TRANSPORT

Crossrail Line

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what recent estimate he has made of the likely cost of Crossrail 2.

Stephen Hammond: A recent report by London First estimated the cost of Crossrail 2 at between £10 billion and £15 billion. The Department has made no independent estimate of the cost of the scheme.

Departmental Responsibilities

Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what his Department's core statutory obligations are; and what estimate he has made of the annual cost of delivering each such obligation.

Norman Baker: This question can only be answered at disproportionate cost. To answer this question would require trawling through all of the current statutes and to form an assessment of the annual cost of delivering each of the core statutory obligations.

Driving Under Influence: Drugs

Jim Dobbin: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport which external stakeholders the Government's recently established expert panel on drug driving has (a) had meetings with and (b) received information from; and if he will make a statement.

Stephen Hammond: The following list details those organisations that the expert panel made reference to or held conversations with:
	The International Council on Alcohol, Drugs and Traffic Safety
	The Driving Vehicle and Licensing Agency (DVLA)
	The Royal College of General Practitioners
	Clockwork Research Ltd
	Napp Pharmaceutical Group
	British Pain Society
	Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs
	The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency
	In addition, teleconferences or meetings were held with experts from the University of Groningen, University of Ghent, University of Surrey and Kings College London. The panel also made use of published research papers, articles and guidelines already in the public domain. We will be publishing the panel's report shortly.

East Midlands Airport: Tunnels

Andrew Bridgen: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what advice he has received on the (a) safety and (b) viability of creating a tunnel under East Midlands airport.

Simon Burns: The advice submitted by HS2 Ltd reflects an early stage in the design of the scheme but they are confident that the options put forward are viable. There are many national and international examples of tunnels being constructed under sensitive locations and the company is committed to following industry best practice in scheme design as they continue to refine and develop their proposals.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Jamie Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what steps his Department has taken to quantify the economic benefit to West Cumbria of High Speed 2.

Simon Burns: I refer the hon. Member to my answer to his question of 4 February 2013, Official Report, columns 66-7W.

Thameslink Railway Line

Alison McGovern: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what recent progress has been made on Thameslink procurement and the cascade of existing stock to lines that are being electrified including the Liverpool to Manchester line.

Simon Burns: On 20 December 2012, Official Report, column 1048, I announced that commercial agreement had been reached on key elements of the deal with Siemens and the Cross London Trains consortium. We are targeting financial close for early this year.
	Discussions on the procurement of additional electric rolling stock are currently underway, and it is expected that the relevant parties should be in a position to conclude an agreement in the summer that enables the build and delivery of rolling stock in time to cascade electric vehicles to some newly electrified routes, including the Liverpool to Manchester line.

HOME DEPARTMENT

Asylum: Finance

Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many asylum applicants receiving support under section 4 of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999 have been receiving support for more than (a) two years, (b) four years and (c) six years; and if she will make a statement.

Mark Harper: Section 4 support is only provided to a limited group of failed asylum seekers who have chosen not to leave the United Kingdom. These include cases where the person is applying for a passport from their national embassy to facilitate their return to their country of origin and cases where the person has made further representations to be allowed to stay in the United Kingdom (despite already having received a negative decision).
	The data requested are set out in the following table. The data are taken from Management Information systems and are not held in a format compatible with National Statistics protocols; it would be hard to reconcile this data precisely to other published numbers.
	
		
			 Duration Cases 
			 0 to 2 years 1,335 
			 2 to 4 years 883 
			 4 to 6 years 382 
			 6+years 127 
			 Total 2,727

British Nationality: Assessments

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what her policy is on the number of times someone wanting to settle permanently in the UK can take a Life in the UK test.

Mark Harper: A new Life in the UK test will be introduced on 25 March 2013, eight weeks after publication of the new handbook, to allow candidates time to prepare. Unlike the current test which only has questions on selected chapters, the new test will include questions on all sections of the new handbook. There is no limit on the number of times a person can take the Life in the UK test.

Counterfeit Manufacturing: Euro

Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many investigations into alleged breaches of the Protection of the Euro against Counterfeiting Regulations have been started in each of the last three years for which figures are available; how many prosecutions have been attempted for breaches of these regulations; and how many such prosecutions resulted in a conviction.

Jeremy Browne: According to the National Central Office for the Suppression of Counterfeit Currency and Protected Coins which sits within the Serious Organised Crime Agency there have been no investigations into breaches of the Protection of the Euro against Counterfeiting Regulations in the UK and no prosecutions under these regulations.

Deportation: Offenders

Jeremy Lefroy: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many foreign nationals convicted of serious criminal offences in the UK in each of the last five years have been deported.

Mark Harper: The UK Border Agency seeks to deport from the UK foreign national offenders who meet the following criteria:
	A court recommendation.
	For non-EEA nationals—a custodial sentence of 12 months or more either in one sentence or as an aggregate of two or three sentences over a period of five years, or a custodial sentence of any length for a drug offence (other than possession).
	For EEA nationals—a custodial sentence of 12 months or more for an offence involving drugs, violent or sexual crimes or a custodial sentence of 24 months or more for other offences.
	Any foreign national offenders not meeting the above criteria are removed from the United Kingdom under Section 10(1) of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999.
	The following table sets out the number of foreign national offenders removed or deported from the United Kingdom in each year of the last five years. This is management information which is subject to change. The double count column refers to cases which have been counted as a removal by both the Criminal Casework Directorate and the regional offices.
	
		
			  Total number of FNOs removed by UKBA Number of FNOs deported (criteria cases) Number of FNOs removed (non-criteria cases) Double counts 
			 2008 5,395 4,125 1,270 — 
			 2009 5,530 4,223 1,307 — 
			 2010 5,342 4,110 1,319 87 
			 2011 4,649 3,376 1,349 76 
			 2012 Q1 to 3 3,382 2,585 865 68 
		
	
	The double count column refers to cases which have been counted as a removal by both the Criminal Casework Directorate and the regional officer.

Entry Clearances

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many visa applications were rejected in each of the last five years.

Mark Harper: Information on the total number of entry clearance visa applications and outcomes of entry clearance visas resolved (total decisions) is currently published annually. Corresponding information for 2012 is planned to be published on 28 February 2013, as part of the Home Office's quarterly Immigration Statistics release.
	The figures for visas, provided in response to this question and appearing in the table provide the latest available published statistics (2007 to 2011) for refusals of entry clearance visa applications only.
	The latest Home Office immigration statistics on entry clearance visas are published in the release Immigration Statistics July to September 2012, which is available from the Library of the House and on the Home Office Science website at:
	http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/publications/science-research-statistics/research-statistics/immigration-asylum-research/immigration-q3-2012/
	
		
			 Entry clearance visa applications and resolutions(1), 2007 to 2011 
			  Applications Resolved Issued Refused Withdrawn or Lapsed 
			 2007 2,541,871 2,551,022 2,062,636 469,483 18,903 
			 2008 2,440,371 2,402,496 1,954,610 428,619 19,267 
			 2009 2,447,390 2,449,661 1,995,374 428,325 25,962 
			 2010 2,529,964 2,553,896 2,144,642 379,584 29,670 
			 2011 2,605,283 2,616,031 2,272,891 323,004 20,136 
			 (1) The information provided relates to applications received and cases resolved in each calendar year, Some applications received may be resolved in a subsequent year to receipt of application. Source: Immigration Statistics, July to September 2012, Table be.01

Immigration: Children

David Ward: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what her policy is on the sharing of information between the UK Border Agency and the Child Support Agency for the purpose of ensuring that sponsors who do not support their dependent children in the UK are unable to bring other dependents into the UK.

Mark Harper: The UK Border Agency provides the Department for Work and Pensions and HM Revenue and Customs with the facility to make checks on immigration status and history for the purpose of determining entitlement to benefits. The UK Border Agency conducts checks with other Departments to verify whether a person qualifies for entry under the immigration rules, including the minimum earnings requirements introduced for sponsors of family migrants. The UK Border Agency keeps these arrangements under review and will consider further whether specific account should be taken of money owed in child support payments.

Members: Correspondence

John Baron: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when her Department plans to respond to the letter of 24 October 2012, email of 28 November 2012 and letter of 20 December 2012 from the hon. Member for Basildon and Billericay regarding a constituent Ms Joan Sutherland.

Mark Harper: holding answer 28 January 2013
	Border Force replied to my hon. Friend on 31 January 2013.

Police: Surveillance

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  whether her Department was aware of the practice of undercover police officers creating aliases based on the details of dead children; when such incidents occurred; whether such activities were sanctioned by her Department; and on what date the practice of using dead infant identities ceased to be authorised by the Metropolitan Police;
	(2)  what recent consideration she has given to the need for a public inquiry into undercover policing; and if she will make a statement.

Damian Green: Decisions in relation to undercover policing are the operational responsibility of senior police officers—in this case, in the Metropolitan Police. It is therefore unlikely that my Department would have been made aware of these practices.
	These allegations, along with other matters in respect of the conduct of undercover policing, are being investigated by a team led by Chief Constable Mick Creedon of Derbyshire Police, under the supervision of the Independent Police Complaints Commission. That investigation, known as Operation Herne, will reveal more about how the practice came to be used and on whose authority.
	Given that Operation Herne has yet to conclude and may result in criminal or misconduct proceedings, it would be inappropriate to consider a public inquiry into these matters.

Regulation of Investigative Powers Act 2000

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many times each of the agencies granted investigative powers under the Regulation of Investigative Powers Act 2000 have used these powers in each year since that legislation's implementation.

James Brokenshire: holding answer 7 February 2013
	All the publicly available information regarding the use of powers contained in this Act is set out in the annual reports of the Interception of Communications, Chief Surveillance and Intelligence Services Commissioners, copies of which can be found in the Library of the House.

Security Guards

Lindsay Roy: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether she has any plans to introduce tighter regulations on the private security industry.

James Brokenshire: holding answer 11 February 2013
	The Security Industry Authority (SIA) is the current industry regulator and is responsible for licensing individuals working in the sector. The Government intends to reform the regulatory regime to focus for the first time on the regulation of security businesses, while maintaining a register of individuals in the industry. A new regulator will be established outside of the state sector to enforce the regime, as the successor to the SIA.
	The Home Office recently held a UK wide consultation on the future regulation of the private security industry, which outlined in detail the Government's proposed reforms.
	Responsibility for the regulation of the private security industry is fully devolved to Scotland and Northern Ireland, who will decide on whether to will opt in to the proposed reforms.

Travel and Subsistence Payments

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many senior officials in her Department's arm’s length bodies (a) have and (b) have had during 2012-13 terms of employment that specify that their main place of employment is their home address and that they are entitled to claim travel and subsistence expenses for visiting the offices of the arm's length body.

James Brokenshire: The arm's length bodies sponsored by the Home Office have reported that two of their senior officials had their main place of employment as their home address.

Travel and Subsistence Payments

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many chairs in her Department's arm's-length bodies are paid on the basis that they are exempt from personally meeting any tax liability in respect of travel and subsistence payments for attending meetings at the offices of the arm's-length body.

James Brokenshire: The arm's length bodies sponsored by the Home Office have reported that three people had such arrangements.

Travel and Subsistence Payments

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many senior officials of her Department's arm's-length bodies are paid on the basis that they are exempt from personally meeting any tax liability in respect of travel and subsistence payments for attending meetings at the offices of the arm's-length body.

James Brokenshire: The arm's length bodies sponsored by the Home Office have reported one of their senior officials had such an arrangement.

UK Border Agency

Fiona O'Donnell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how the UK Border Agency performed against its published service standards in (a) 2010, (b) 2011 and (c) 2012.

Mark Harper: holding answer 7 February 2013
	The UK Border Agency publishes figures on its performance against migration service standards on a quarterly basis as part of its commitment to transparency. These data are disaggregated by quarter and work stream and cover the period from April 2010 to September 2012. The latest figures are available on the UK Border Agency website at:
	http://www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/sitecontent/documents/aboutus/percentage-of-migration/

BUSINESS, INNOVATION AND SKILLS

Apprentices: Lancashire

Andrew Stephenson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many apprenticeships commenced in each sector in (a) Pendle constituency and (b) Lancashire in each of the last three years.

Matthew Hancock: Table 1 shows the number of apprenticeship programme starts in Pendle parliamentary constituency and Lancashire local education authority by sector subject area. Data are shown for 2009/10 to 2011/12, the latest year for which full year data are available.
	
		
			 Table 1: Apprenticeship programme starts by geography and sector subject area, 2009/10 to 2011/12. 
			 Sector subject area 2009/10 2010/11 2011/12 
			 Pendle Parliamentary Constituency    
			 Agriculture, Horticulture and Animal Care 20 10 10 
			 Arts. Media and Publishing (1)— (1)— (1)— 
			 Business, Administration and Law 110 270 330 
			 Construction, Planning and the Built Environment 50 80 50 
			 Education and Training 10 10 30 
			 Engineering and Manufacturing Technologies 60 100 120 
			 Health, Public Services and Care 60 160 200 
			 Information and Communication Technology (1)— 20 10 
		
	
	
		
			 Languages, Literature and Culture (1)— (1)— (1)— 
			 Leisure, Travel and Tourism 50 20 40 
			 Preparation for Life and Work (1)— (1)— (1)— 
			 Retail and Commercial Enterprise 120 150 170 
			 Science and Mathematics (1)— (1)— (1)— 
			 Unknown (1)— (1)— (1)— 
			 Total 470 820 970 
			     
			 Lancashire Local Education Authority    
			 Agriculture, Horticulture and Animal Care 110 150 190 
			 Arts, Media and Publishing 10 10 20 
			 Business, Administration and Law 2,240 3,590 4,420 
			 Construction, Planning and the Built Environment 940 980 600 
			 Education and Training 30 180 300 
			 Engineering and Manufacturing Technologies 870 1,110 1,230 
			 Health, Public Services and Care 1,020 2,430 3,050 
			 Information and Communication Technology 150 380 270 
			 Languages. Literature and Culture (1)— (1)— (1)— 
			 Leisure, Travel and Tourism 360 490 640 
			 Preparation for Life and Work (1)— (1)— (1)— 
			 Retail and Commercial Enterprise 1,730 2,590 2,520 
			 Science and Mathematics (1)— (1)— 10 
			 Unknown (1)— (1)— (1)— 
			 Total 7,460 11,920 13,230 
			 (1 )Indicates a value of less than 10. Notes: 1. All figures are rounded to the nearest 10. 2. Geographic breakdowns are based upon the home postcode of the learner. 3. Figures are based on the geographic boundaries as of May 2010. 4. Figures for 2011/12 onwards are not directly comparable to earlier years as a single individualised learner record (ILR) data collection system has been introduced. Small technical changes have been made in the way learners from more than one provision type are counted, leading to a removal of duplicate learners and a reduction in overall learner numbers of approximately 2%. More information on the single ILR is available at: http://www.thedataservice.org.uk/NR/rdonlyres/C05DCDD5-67EE-4AD0-88B9-BEBC8F7F3300/0/SILR_Effects_SFR_Learners_June12.pdf Source: Individualised Learner Record

Arms Trade

George Galloway: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills 
	(1)  with which Arab leaders the Prime Minister has discussed the sale of British arms since May 2010;
	(2)  whether he insisted in meetings with his counterparts in Arab states that sales of arms and materiel would be dependent on such states instituting meaningful democratic reforms.

Michael Fallon: The Prime Minister's international contacts include regular discussions with those in leadership positions in Arab League member states.
	This Government takes our arms export responsibilities extremely seriously and operates some of the most rigorous export controls in the world.
	All applications to export controlled goods or services to any overseas destination are rigorously assessed case by case against the Consolidated European Union and National Arms Export Licensing Criteria. The criteria include consideration of a wide range of factors, such as the human rights record and fundamental freedoms of the country concerned, the preservation of regional peace and security and stability.
	I, and my ministerial colleagues have consistently promoted UK defence and security exports in meetings with our counterparts across the globe as part of this effort. We will continue to do so, as part of the spectrum of support we are providing to all sectors of the economy. This spectrum of support is a key principle of our industrial strategy.

Carers: Travel

Ian Swales: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what guidance his Department has issued on whether carers companies are allowed to treat travelling times between house calls as unpaid time for the purpose of minimum wage calculation.

Jo Swinson: Guidance on how travelling time is treated for the minimum wage purposes is available at:
	www.gov.uk/minimum-wage-different-types-work/overview
	Employers must ensure that their workers are paid at least the minimum wage on average for the hours they work. Time spent travelling on business, including between house calls, counts as time worked for minimum wage purposes.

Royal Mail

Oliver Colvile: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps his Department is taking to safeguard the Royal Mail's universal service following its privatisation.

Michael Fallon: Richard Hooper's report in 2008 and his updated report in 2010 made three clear recommendations to secure the future of the universal postal service. Government accepted these and, through the Postal Services Act 2011, Parliament implemented them. So far we have relieved Royal Mail of its historic £10 billion pension deficit and established a new regulatory regime. The final phase is to give Royal Mail access to flexible private capital that is needed to ensure that it is successful and sustainable in the long-term. The Government will also honour its commitment that at least 10% of shares will be made available to employees.
	Parliament has guaranteed through the Postal Services Act continuation of collection to delivery of letters six days a week throughout the UK at uniform, affordable prices. Royal Mail will continue to provide the universal postal service to these standards regardless of its ownership.
	The Act gives Ofcom a clear statutory duty to secure the provision of the universal postal service and the powers to intervene if the universal service is at risk. Those powers will continue to apply after there has been a sale of shares in Royal Mail.

UK Trade and Investment

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will estimate the proportion of GDP represented by the annual budget of UK Trade and Investment.

Michael Fallon: From the latest national data available, UK GDP in current market prices was £1,516,153 million (£1.5 trillion) in 2011. UK Trade & Investments (UKTI) total budget was £320.4 million in 2011-12, equivalent to 0.02% of UK GDP in 2011.

Vetting

Steve Rotheram: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what discussions he has had with the Information Commissioner on financial and logistical support for the Information Commissioner's Office's investigation into blacklisting.

Jo Swinson: There have been no discussions as yet. A meeting has been arranged for 2 April to discuss how best to handle any evidence of any ongoing blacklisting that emerges.

Vetting

Steve Rotheram: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what representations he has received on reports of blacklisting of workers in the construction of (a) Portcullis House, (b) Bluewater shopping centre, (c) Liverpool One shopping centre and (d) the Olympic Park; and if he will undertake a Government-led investigation.

Jo Swinson: The Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, my right hon. Friend the Member for Twickenham (Vince Cable), has made clear that where there is new evidence that blacklisting is currently being used in any sector of the economy, the appropriate authorities will be asked to carry out a full and thorough investigation.
	The Employment Relations Act 1999 (Blacklists) Regulations 2010 make it unlawful for an individual or organisation to compile, sell or make use of a blacklist.
	Although correspondence has been received, no new evidence and no representations have been made to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills that demonstrate workers have been blacklisted on the named projects.

Vocational Training

Gordon Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how much has been made available from the adult skills budget provided by the Skills Funding Agency to each of the first wave City Deals in (a) 2011-12 and (b) 2012-13.

Matthew Hancock: holding answer 4 February 2013
	The single adult skills budget is managed by the Skill Funding Agency, an executive agency of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS).
	Sheffield are being provided funding from the single adult budget by the Skills Funding Agency as part of an existing contract. Sheffield will be able to deploy up to £23.8 million over three years from the adult skills budget, with funding in the final year being subject to performance in the first two years.

Vocational Training

Gordon Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how much funding his Department will provide for the skills element of each of the first eight City Deals in (a) 2011-12 and (b) 2012-13.

Matthew Hancock: In 2011-12 the Skills Funding Agency provided the eight first wave City Deals, and London, with a separate City Skills Fund to help them articulate their skills priorities and to set up apprentice hubs to support small businesses. This amounted to £4.5 million.
	BIS will be providing up to £20 million funding to the first wave of cities for the skills elements of the City Deals which were announced in July 2012. This funding will be issued to the cities on behalf of BIS via the Skills Funding Agency. The first wave of cities will receive up to £2.56 million in 2012/13.
	Sheffield will also receive funding from the single adult budget, via the Skills Funding Agency, as part of an existing contract. Sheffield will be able to deploy up to £23.8 million over three years from the adult skills budget, with funding in the final year being subject to performance in the first two years.

COMMUNITIES AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT

Carbon Monoxide: Alarms

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what plans he has to discuss with representatives of landlords the effect of extending the provisions of the Smoke Detectors Act 1991 to include (a) audible carbon monoxide detectors and (b) audible dual carbon monoxide and smoke detectors.

Mark Prisk: I refer the hon. Member to the answers given to him on 18 December 2012, Official Report, columns 692-93W.

Culture: Finance

Catherine McKinnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what discussions he has held with the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport on the effect of the Local Government Finance Settlement on funding for cultural projects by local authorities.

Brandon Lewis: holding answer 11 February 2013
	Ministers regularly meet colleagues from the Department for Culture, Media and Sport to discuss a range of matters.

Families: Disadvantaged

Steve Rotheram: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the troubled families initiative in (a) Liverpool, Walton constituency, (b) Liverpool and (c) Merseyside.

Brandon Lewis: Liverpool city council has committed to turning around the lives of 2,105 troubled families by the end of this Parliament. In the first year, the local authority has committed to work with a third of this total.
	My Department is about to commission an independent evaluation of the Troubled Families programme which will look at the outcomes that areas such as Liverpool demonstrate and the savings made as a result.

Fire Services: Redundancy

David Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many firefighters' jobs were lost in (a) 2011 and (b) 2012.

Brandon Lewis: Figures on the number of firefighters in post can be found in my Department's annual publication ‘Fire and Rescue Service Operational Statistics’ which can be found on my Department's website:
	www.gov.uk/government/organisations/department-for-communities-and-local-government/series/fire-and-rescue-authorities-operational-statistics

Local Government Finance

Charlotte Leslie: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 
	(1)  for what reason the latest available data was used for all aspects of the provisional local government finance settlement other than in the allocation of local authorities to damping bands;
	(2)  what assessment he has made of the effect of the use of data from 2010-11 rather than the most recent data to assign local authorities to damping bands on local authorities which have frozen council tax in the last two years.

Brandon Lewis: holding answer 31 January 2013
	This was discussed in the Local Government Finance Working Group's Baseline Sub-Group which comprised officials from the Department together with representatives from local government. The papers and minutes of the meetings are available at:
	http://www.local.communities.gov.uk/finance/lgrr/bsg.htm
	The Baseline Sub-Group concluded that, given the uncertainty around whether or not the 2012-13 council tax freeze grant should be included in the calculation of the notional budget requirement for 2012-13, it would be better to freeze the damping bands. This would also help to ensure stability.

Social Rented Housing

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many rented homes in the social sector are overcrowded in each local authority area.

Mark Prisk: Overcrowding is estimated using the English Housing Survey; due to the sample size, it is not possible to provide estimates by local authority.
	According to the most recently published English Housing Survey, there were 249,000 households in over-crowded accommodation in social housing; these figures are a three year average for 2009-10 to 2011-12. In the same period, there were 386,000 households in the social sector who were under-occupying (DCLG, ‘English Housing Survey Headline Report 2011-12’, February 2013, p.26).
	The comparative figures in the previous survey for 2008-09 to 2010-11 indicated that there were 278,000 households in over-crowded accommodation and 390,000 households in the social sector who were under-occupying (DCLG, ‘English Housing Survey Headline Report 2010-11’, February 2012, p.26).
	While the figures indicate that the situation may have improved slightly from the levels inherited from the last Administration, they also provide a clear policy rationale for taking action to address the empty rooms subsidy in the housing benefit system (as has already been done in the private rented sector). Tackling unnecessary under-occupation in the social rented sector, and making better use of the finite social housing stock, will help reduce over-crowding.

Travel and Subsistence Payments

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 
	(1)  how many senior officials in his Department's arm's length bodies (a) have and (b) have had during 2012-13 terms of employment that specify that their main place of employment is their home address and that they are entitled to claim travel and subsistence expenses for visiting the offices of the arm's length body;
	(2)  how many chairs in his Department's arm's length bodies are paid on the basis that they are exempt from personally meeting any tax liability in respect of travel and subsistence payments for attending meetings at the offices of the arm's length body;
	(3)  how many senior officials of his Department's arm's length bodies are paid on the basis that they are exempt from personally meeting any tax liability in respect of travel and subsistence payments for attending meetings at the offices of the arm's length body.

Brandon Lewis: No senior official in the Department's arm’s length bodies have or have had terms of employment for 2012-13 specifying that they are entitled to claim travel and subsistence expenses for visiting the offices of the arm's length body.
	None of the senior officials in DCLG's arm’s length bodies are paid on the basis of being exempt from personally meeting any tax liability arising for travel and subsistence payments for attending meetings at the office of the arm's length body.
	The Chairmen of the Valuation Tribunal Service, the Architects Registration Board and the Fire Service College are exempt from meeting any liability arising from travel and subsistence payments in respect of travelling to the office of their respective bodies.
	Any tax liability arising from travel and subsistence paid to the non-executive chairman of the Fire Service College for travelling to the College is paid directly by the Fire Service College.
	The Valuation Tribunal Service and the Architects Registration Board and their respective Chairmen have an HMRC dispensation granting these travel and subsistence payments exemption. The HMRC dispensations have been in place since at least 2004.
	Such arrangements are in place since the Chairmen's normal place of business is not the public bodies' offices and the travel is solely related to the performance of their official duties.

ENERGY AND CLIMATE CHANGE

Departmental Responsibilities

Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what his Department's core statutory obligations are; and what estimate he has of the annual cost of delivering each such obligation.

Gregory Barker: The Department of Energy and Climate Change is responsible for a wide range of statutory functions and obligations relating to energy and climate change issues. Full details on the Department's responsibilities and their implementation are available in the Department's published Business Plan, available at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/47961/decc-business-plan-2011-2015.pdf
	Further detail on the full range of DECC's responsibilities, and expenditure on delivering them, is available through DECC's annual report and accounts, available at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/48452/5718-decc-annual-report-and-accounts-201112-.pdf

Fuel Poverty

Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the oral answer to the hon. Member for Halifax of 31 January 2013, Official Report, column 1037, on fuel poverty, what the evidential basis is for the statement that it is projected that the number of households in fuel poverty (a) remain the same in 2011 and (b) may rise again in 2012.

Gregory Barker: The methodology behind the projected levels of fuel poverty in 2011 and 2012 is described in detail in chapter 9 of the latest annual fuel poverty report. This can be found here:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/fuel-poverty-annual-report-on-statistics-2012

Government Procurement Card

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what the mean average spend using a Government Procurement Card was per member of staff in (a) his Department and (b) each of its arm's length bodies in (i) 2011 and (ii) 2012.

Gregory Barker: The mean average spend using a Government Procurement Card per member of staff is as follows:
	
		
			 £ 
			  2011 2012 
			 DECC 413 187 
			 Coal Authority 930 1,310 
			 Committee of Climate Change 1,405 1,054 
			 Nuclear Decommissioning Authority 360 250 
			 Civil Nuclear Constabulary 1,913 1,241

Nuclear Reactors

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what estimate he has made of the proportion of nuclear waste liabilities that could be utilised by integral fast reactor technology to produce energy.

John Hayes: The UK's inventory of radioactive waste and materials consists of a number of categories including: wastes (i.e. those materials defined as having no further use), spent fuels and other nuclear materials such as reprocessed Plutonium and Uranium.
	As part of its assessment of alternatives to reuse as MOX, for the management of plutonium, the NDA is also examining the use of fast reactor technology, in the form of a PRISM reactor and associated facilities.
	Fast reactors, when commercially deployed may also provide usage routes for some elements of the spent fuels stored. DECC has commissioned further analysis of nuclear fuel cycle scenarios open to the UK, including the use of fast reactors alongside other technologies. We aim to publish the outputs from this in due course.
	With regards to the wastes, the Committee on Radioactive Waste Management spent three years undertaking an examination of practical routes for the disposition or use of higher level radioactive wastes. Their report (CoRWM doc. 700) concludes that geological disposal preceded by safe and secure interim storage is the best available option.
	The report can be found at can be found at:
	http://corwm.decc.gov.uk/assets/corwm/post-nov% 2007%20doc%20store/documents/reports %20to%20government/nov%20and%20dec%202007/700%20-%20corwm%20july%202006%20recommendations%20to %20government.pdf

Nuclear Reactors

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change 
	(1)  if he will make a comparative assessment of the efficiency potential of integral fast reactors and traditional light water reactors;
	(2)  what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the potential offered by integral fast reactors for the generation of energy.

John Hayes: In September 2012, the Department published a number of studies commissioned from the National Nuclear Laboratories which considered advanced nuclear reactor systems and alternative fuel cycles.
	Two of these reports provided a preliminary assessment of the relevance to the UK of several of the advanced reactor systems currently being developed internationally, including a number of fast reactor technologies. These can be found at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/advanced-reactor-systems-assessment-against-uk-performance-metrics-by-the-national-nuclear-laboratory
	The Department has commissioned further analysis of nuclear fuel cycle scenarios open to the UK, and the operation of fast reactors is included. We hope to publish the output from this analysis in due course.
	As part of its assessment of alternatives to reuse as MOX, for the management of plutonium, the NDA is also examining the use of fast reactor technology, in the form of a PRISM reactor and associated facilities.

Offshore Industry

Mary Glindon: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change whether EU law restricts the Government's ability to introduce a requirement that North Sea oil and gas producers source all, or a proportion of, their fabrication needs from UK-based suppliers; and if he will make a statement.

John Hayes: EU law includes provisions on the free movement of goods and services and non-discrimination, which underpin the single market. These provisions benefit UK based companies which wish to perform work elsewhere in the EUS including UK based companies which are able to meet the fabrication needs of oil and gas producers based in other member states.

Renewable Energy

Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change if he will publish a list of all renewable energy generation developments installed in (a) 2010, (b) 2011 and (c) 2012; on what date each such development (i) received planning consent and (ii) construction started; and what the capacity of each such development is.

John Hayes: The Department holds information on renewable energy generation developments installed in 2010, 2011 and 2012 detailing when each such development received planning consent, when construction commenced and what the capacity of each such development is. This information is updated monthly and is published on the extract spreadsheet as part of the renewable energy planning database, which can be accessed at:
	https://restats.decc.gov.uk/app/reporting/decc/monthlyextract

Warm Front Scheme

Stephen McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what plans his Department has for the estimated £50 million underspend from the Warm Front scheme.

Gregory Barker: Although there is inherent uncertainty, the Department closely monitors spend and activity under the Warm Front scheme using information from the scheme manager (Carillion Energy Services) on the level of demand for the scheme and the delivery times experienced. Our monitoring suggests that spending on Warm Front applications made in 2012-13 could amount to some £70 million. The fuel poverty capital budget for 2012-13 is £100 million. In order to maximise the use of this budget, we have established a Local Authority Fuel Poverty Competition. Through this, £30 million has been awarded to local authorities across England to improve the thermal efficiency of dwellings for low income and vulnerable local residents, for example through installation of efficient central heating systems and insulation.

ENVIRONMENT FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

Cattle: Imports

Simon Hart: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what (a) blood tests and (b) other veterinary checks are administered on cattle destined for import to the UK before they enter the UK.

David Heath: All cattle imported into the United Kingdom from other EU member states or third countries (i.e. countries outside the EU) must comply with health controls that are laid down by EU legislation. Responsibility for implementing these rules in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland falls to DEFRA and the devolved Administrations respectively.
	All cattle entering the United Kingdom from other EU member states must comply with the requirements of council directive 64/432/EEC. This directive requires that cattle for breeding and production must come from herds that are officially free of tuberculosis, brucellosis and bovine leukosis. These cattle must also be accompanied by a health certificate signed by an official veterinarian of the veterinary authorities of the member state concerned, in conformity with the model laid down in the directive, in accordance with Council Regulation (EC) No 599/2004. The cattle will need to be tested for tuberculosis, brucellosis and bovine leukosis if the member state or region is not officially free of these diseases.
	Cattle may only be imported from approved third countries. Approved third countries are those that have been able to demonstrate to the European Commission that they have robust animal health (and welfare) systems in place, comparable to those in the EU, and that their veterinary services are able to vouch for the health certification that is issued. Cattle must be accompanied by a health certificate which conforms to the model laid down in Commission Regulation (EC) No 206/2010 and which is signed by an official veterinarian of the veterinary authority in the country of origin. Model certificates can vary in their detailed requirements but generally require assurance that the animals have been held on premises that have been free of notifiable disease for specific periods and have been tested for a range of diseases depending on the health status of the exporting third country.
	While the majority of notifiable diseases are detected by serology (bovine tuberculosis is an important exception in that a skin test is used), in many cases, official veterinarians are able to sign health certificates on the basis of the exporting country having official disease free status. In such circumstances, further blood tests would not be needed.
	Detailed information on the import requirements for England is available on the DEFRA website.

Common Fisheries Policy

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment he has made of the recently-passed reform package of the EU Common Fisheries Policy.

Richard Benyon: I am pleased that the European Parliament recently voted in favour of many of the changes we need to reform this failed policy. The vote was a crucial step forward in securing radical reform of the common fisheries policy (CFP) and included measures to eliminate discards and fish sustainably.
	However, the vote was not the end of the process and there is still more work to be done over the coming months as the reforms will be co-decided by the Council of Fisheries Ministers and the European Parliament. I will continue to work with my fellow Fisheries Ministers and the European Parliament to ensure that the new CFP will help deliver a prosperous fishing industry and healthy fish stocks.

Common Fisheries Policy

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps his Department is taking to ensure that the new EU common fisheries policy will be adhered to (a) in UK waters and (b) by UK fishermen.

Amber Rudd: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps he is taking to ensure that the UK small-scale fishing fleet is properly consulted on fisheries matters and common fisheries policy reform.

Richard Benyon: Negotiations on the new common fisheries policy (CFP) are due to conclude later this year. However, work is already under way to prepare to implement the reformed CFP and DEFRA will be working closely with all parts of the UK fishing industry to ensure that the new provisions are brought into force effectively when the regulation is finally agreed.

Common Fisheries Policy

Margaret Ritchie: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what discussions he has had with the EU Fisheries Commissioner on the regionalisation of fisheries management; and if he will make a statement.

Richard Benyon: As UK Fisheries Minister, I continue to have discussions on our key priorities, including the regionalisation of fisheries management and for fundamental reform of the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP), with a wide range of people and organisations. They include the EU Commissioner, Members of the UK and European Parliaments, ministerial colleagues of other member states, and representatives of our fishing and related industries.
	I will continue to press the case for genuine reform and decentralisation of the CFP as negotiations between the Council and European Parliament progress during 2013.

Meat: Contamination

Margaret Ritchie: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if his Department is recognising the validity of the Food Safety Authority of Ireland's test procedures as employed in the recent cases of contaminated meat products.

David Heath: DEFRA and the Food Standards Agency (FSA) are continuing to liaise with the Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) and the laboratory in Ireland, which undertook the analysis, to ascertain further details of the methods of analysis used. At this time DEFRA/FSA has no reason to doubt the validity of the FSAI data.

Meat: Contamination

Huw Irranca-Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether he has written to local authorities and trading standards officers to encourage them to test for adulterated meat.

Anna Soubry: I have been asked to reply 
	on behalf of the Department of Health.
	The Food Standards Agency (FSA) wrote to local authorities on 17 January 2013 to inform them about the Food Safety Authority Ireland's survey of beef products. This drew their attention to the FSA's four-point action plan, and in particular the plans for a United Kingdom-wide study of food authenticity of equine and porcine DNA in processed meat products, in which local authorities could take part. Subsequently, the FSA has written to the 28 local authorities selected to participate in that study with details of their sampling plans. The FSA will continue to communicate with local authorities to let them know how they can contribute to monitoring and surveillance of adulterated meat in the UK.

Plants

Rachel Reeves: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much his Department has spent on indoor and outdoor plants and trees since his appointment.

Richard Benyon: Since the appointment on 4 September 2012 of the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for North Shropshire (Mr Paterson), the core Department has spent £2,414.08 on indoor and outdoor plants and trees, including Christmas trees.

Scallops

Alison Seabeck: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  how many and what proportion of regulated vessel trips by scallop vessels reported and recorded by elogbooks fishing Western Waters are still to be verified against sales notes for each month between January and November 2012;
	(2)  when he plans to answer PQ 133735, tabled on 11 December 2012.

Richard Benyon: The activity reported through the e-logbook reporting mechanism by UK scallop vessels controlled by the Western Waters management regime (ie those vessels 15 metres and over in length subject to days at sea restrictions) is only available related to landings by such vessels in English, Scottish or Northern Irish ports and by English, Scottish or Northern Ireland administered vessels landing abroad. This is given in the following table.
	
		
			 Month of 2012 Number of e-logbook returns from UK scallopers regulated by the Western Waters regime that are yet to be validated against sales notes data As a proportion of the total number of e-logbooks received from such vessels related to scalloping activity (percentage) 
			 January 0 0 
			 February 0 0 
			 March 0 0 
			 April 3 4 
			 May 1 1 
			 June 5 3 
			 July 3 3 
		
	
	
		
			 August 1 1 
			 September 13 7 
			 October 11 8 
			 November 24 9 
		
	
	In addition to the landings included above there were six landings into Wales across the period where activity has been reported via e-logbook returns and the landings have yet to be validated against sales notes. Information on the total number of e-logbooks received by the Welsh Government related to scalloping activity by vessels subject to the regime is not available; hence it has not been possible to include these landings in the above table. Corresponding information related to activity by Isle of Man administered vessels that take part in the fishery (usually in the winter months only) is also unavailable.
	I apologise for delay in answering this PQ.

Travel and Subsistence Payments

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many senior officials in his Department's arm's-length bodies (a) have and (b) have had during 2012-13 terms of employment that specify that their main place of employment is their home address and that they are entitled to claim travel and subsistence expenses for visiting the offices of the arm's-length body.

Richard Benyon: A total of 33 senior officials in the Department's Executive Agencies and non-departmental public bodies either have or have had such terms of employment during 2012-13.
	In most cases, contracts reflect the fact that senior managers in national delivery organisations travel regularly to a range of different office locations as part of their role.

Water Bill (Draft)

Margaret Curran: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when he last met (a) Ministers in and (b) officials of the Scottish Government to discuss the draft Water Bill.

Richard Benyon: Ministers of the UK and Scottish Governments have exchanged correspondence regarding the draft Water Bill. DEFRA officials are in regular contact with Scottish Government officials on issues linked to the draft Bill and its implementation.

WALES

Official Engagements

Owen Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what official engagements (a) he and (b) Ministers in his Department have undertaken since September 2012.

David Jones: Details of all official engagements I and my ministerial team undertake are published on the Wales Office website every quarter.

VION Food Group

Albert Owen: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what discussions he has had with ministerial colleagues and Ministers in the Welsh Government on the decision by Vion Food Group Limited to withdraw its food processing business from the UK and the impact on its subsidiaries in Wales; and if he will make a statement.

David Jones: I have regular discussions with ministerial colleagues and Ministers in the Welsh Government on a range of matters which affect Wales.
	The sale of Vion Food Group Limited's UK operations is ultimately a commercial decision, however the Government will of course offer the full support that is available to those employees who may be affected.

TREASURY

Bank Services

Andrew Bridgen: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of banks' willingness to provide basic bank accounts.

Sajid Javid: The Government is committed to ensuring that individuals are able to access an appropriate range of financial products and services.
	All of the major banks currently offer basic bank accounts. More information on the different types of basic bank account on offer is available from the Money Advice Service on their website at:
	http://www.moneyadviceservice.org.uk/

Child Tax Credit

Chris Heaton-Harris: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  how many adults claim child tax credit for children not residing in the UK;
	(2)  for how many children who do not reside in the UK child benefit is being paid.

Sajid Javid: The main purpose of child benefit and the child tax credit is to support families in the UK. Consequently, the rules for these benefits generally do not provide for them to be paid in respect of children who live abroad.
	Nevertheless, both child benefit and the child tax credit are family benefits under EC Regulation 883/2004. This regulation protects the social security rights of nationals of all member states of the European economic area (EEA), including the UK, and Switzerland when they exercise their rights of free movement under EU law.
	The EC Regulations have detailed rules to decide which national social security scheme a worker should pay into and which member state has responsibility for the payment of benefits, including family benefits. The EC Regulations generally provide that workers should pay contributions into the social security scheme of the member state where they work and, in turn, that state is responsible for the payment of family benefits. Consequently, nationals of other EEA member states who are working in the UK and paying compulsory UK national insurance contributions are entitled to claim UK family benefits in respect of children living in another member state.
	I refer the right hon. Member to the reply given to him on 28 January 2013, Official report, columns 619-20W, for details about the number of claims for family benefits paid under the EC Regulations for children resident in another member state and which member states such children reside.

Corporation Tax: Tax Yields

Michael Meacher: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the yield for corporation tax was in 2012; and what estimate he has made of the annual yield for corporation tax in (a) 2013 and (b) 2014 following the changes in the controlled foreign company rules on 1 January 2013 and 1 January 2014.

David Gauke: Corporation Tax receipts are published on an annual basis and are available in Table 11.1A of HMRC's Corporation Tax National Statistics, a link to which is provided as follows:
	http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/statistics/ct-receipts/table11-1a.pdf
	The Office for Budget Responsibility published its latest forecast of Corporation Tax receipts in Table 4.6 of the December 2012 Economic and Fiscal Outlook, a link to which is provided as follows:
	http://budgetresponsibility.independent.gov.uk/pubs/December-2012-Economic-and-fiscal-outlook23423423.pdf
	The estimated Exchequer Impact of changes to the Controlled Foreign Company regime is set out in the Tax Impact and Information Note available on the HMRC website at the following link:
	http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/budget2012/tiin-0724.pdf

Debts Written Off: Burma

Ivan Lewis: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much debt relief has been granted to the government of Burma by the UK.

Sajid Javid: In line with the Pans Club agreement reached on the 24 and 25 January 2013. The UK will provide 50% cancellation on arrears due to the UK, with remaining amounts rescheduled over 15 years, with a seven year grace period. The exact amount of cancellation is to be determined, following reconciliation of debt numbers with Burma.

LIBOR

Margaret Ritchie: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the amount of public monies that will be used by Royal Bank of Scotland to pay fines for attempted manipulation of LIBOR rates.

Greg Clark: The Government has changed the system so that all revenue from UK fines can be used to the benefit of the taxpaying public. We have made provision in the Financial Services Act 2012 for all such fines—net of enforcement costs—to go to the Exchequer.
	The Government has made it clear to RBS that, on this occasion, the US fines should be met in full from past present and future reductions in variable remuneration for RBS.

Public Expenditure: Scotland

Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether Barnett consequential funding has been granted to the Scottish Government as a result of expenditure on Crossrail.

Danny Alexander: Allocations for Crossrail were determined in the 2010 spending review. The Scottish Government received Barnett consequentials on the changes to the Department for Transport budget in the normal way as set out in the Statement of Funding Policy. No further allocations have been subsequently made for this project.

Public Sector Debt

John Stanley: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what (a) the total amount of Government debt and (b) total Government debt as a percentage of gross domestic product was in (i) 2009-10, (ii) 2010-11 and (iii) 2011-12; and what his estimated figures are for 2012-13.

Sajid Javid: As set out in the December Public Sector Finances release. Public Sector Net Debt (PSND) (excluding the temporary effects of financial interventions) was £770 billion in 2009-10, £910 billion in 2010-11 and £1026 billion in 2011-12. As published in its December 2012 “Economic and fiscal outlook”, the Office for Budget Responsibility has forecast that PSND will total £1186 billion in 2012-13. As a percentage of gross domestic product, these figures are 53.1, 60.4, 66.8 and 74.7%, respectively. The Government are taking decisive action to return the public finances to a sustainable position and to provide protection against uncertainty from the global economy. The OBR has judged that the Government was on track to meet its fiscal mandate (to balance the cyclically-adjusted current budget within a rolling 5-year period) a year early, in 2016-17.
	The Government inherited an exceptional fiscal challenge. The financial crisis of 2008 and 2009 resulted in the largest deficit since the second world war and unsustainable public spending. The state was borrowing one pound in every four that it spent. The coalition Government took action and set out a clear, detailed and credible consolidation plan to tackle this historically high level of public borrowing, ensuring that the public finances are restored to a sustainable path. As a result, the Government have made significant progress in reversing the unprecedented increase in borrowing between 2008 and 2010 with public sector net borrowing cut by a quarter, falling from £159 billion (11.2% of GDP) in 2009-10 to £122 billion (8.0% of GDP) in 2011-12.

Tax Yields

Andrew Griffiths: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the total tax revenue taken from each local authority area in the most recent year for which figures are available.

David Gauke: HMRC publish total tax revenue for the United Kingdom: a link to the publication is as follows:
	http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/statistics/receipts/info-analysis.pdf
	Estimates for total tax revenue by local authority are not available. Estimates are available for personal incomes and stamp duty land tax at the local authority level.
	Estimates of income for taxpayers resident in each country, region, borough and district or unitary authority for 2010-11 are published in table 3.14:
	http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/statistics/personal-incomes/tables3-11_3-15a.pdf
	Estimates of total yield attributable to residential and non residential land and property transactions by each local authority are available for 2011-12: see the link as follows:
	http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/statistics/stamp-duty/table15-4-1112.pdf

Tax Yields: Tobacco

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much revenue was generated from taxes on tobacco in each of the last five years.

Sajid Javid: HM Revenue and Customs publishes excise duty collected on tobacco products in the HMRC national statistics bulletin. The tobacco duty revenue for the last five years are provided in the following table, available here:
	https://www.uktradeinfo.com/Statistics/Pages/TaxAndDutyBulletins.aspx
	
		
			 Financial year Total tobacco duty revenue (£ million) 
			 2007-08 8,094 
			 2008-09 8,219 
			 2009-10 8,813 
			 2010-11 9,144 
			 2011-12 9,551 
		
	
	VAT collected on tobacco products is not available. Therefore the total tax revenue collected from tobacco taxation is not available.

Taxation: Fraud

Tom Greatrex: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many people have been (a) investigated and (b) prosecuted for tax fraud in (i) the UK, (ii) Scotland and (iii) South Lanarkshire in each of the last five years.

David Gauke: The term “investigation” can cover many types of interventions undertaken by HMRC. For instance any tax return can be looked at to ensure its accuracy, and HMRC engages with individuals and companies on their tax affairs on the telephone and by carrying out compliance visits. HMRC carries out hundreds of thousands of such interventions every year.
	The majority of tax evasion cases are dealt with using cost-effective civil settlement procedures.
	HMRC also has the power to investigate criminally those that seek to defraud the Exchequer, and it publishes its policy around when it will use this power.
	HMRC is not a prosecuting authority. Where cases do proceed to the criminal courts the prosecution is carried out by the relevant independent prosecuting authority. This is the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) in England and Wales, the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) in Scotland, and the Public Prosecution Service in Northern Ireland (PPSNI).
	Details of the total number of individuals prosecuted and convicted for tax offences are set out as follows. These include offences in relation to both direct and indirect tax, excise, and tax credits.
	It is not HMRC’s policy to divulge regionally broken down operational data of the nature requested.
	
		
			  Prosecutions Convictions 
			 2007-08 526 638 
			 2008-09 416 469 
			 2009-10 296 419 
			 2010-11 402 327 
			 2011-12 497 399 
		
	
	Prosecution and conviction figures in any given year do not necessarily relate to the same individuals due to timing and length of case. Prior to 2010-11, prosecution figures relate to cases as opposed to individuals.

VAT: Medical Equipment

Tessa Munt: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer from the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health of 31 January 2013, Official Report, column 913W, on radiotherapy, whether the Exchequer will receive VAT on the entire £300 million allocation for radiotherapy equipment; and whether large single medical equipment purchases where the funds are raised entirely from charitable donations are exempt from VAT.

David Gauke: Where NHS trusts do pay VAT on the purchase of radiotherapy equipment, this tax will accrue to the Exchequer. The provision of free healthcare is not a business activity for VAT purposes, and therefore VAT paid on related purchases of goods cannot be recovered. However, funding for the NHS is intended to meet their irrecoverable VAT costs.
	There is a VAT zero-rate provision available for 'relevant goods' purchased with charitable or donated funds when it is purchased by an eligible body or donated to an eligible body whose activities are not carried on for profit and used in medical or veterinary research, training, diagnosis or treatment. Relevant goods include medical, scientific, video, computer, sterilising, laboratory or refrigeration equipment. Eligible bodies include certain health bodies, such as national health service trusts, non profit making research institutions, and certain charitable institutions.

Welfare Tax Credits

Gavin Shuker: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of recent trends in the backlog of tax credits; and if he will make a statement.

Sajid Javid: HMRC are currently exceeding all internal timeliness targets for tax credit customer processing and there are no processing backlogs for tax credit new claims and changes of circumstance.

Working Tax Credit

Liam Byrne: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many people of each ethnicity received working tax credits in the latest period for which figures are available.

Sajid Javid: The numbers of those in receipt of working tax credit by ethnicity were estimated for the 2004-05 financial year.
	They show that, of the 1,156,000 families who could be classified by ethnicity:
	1,025,000 contained an applicant of white origin;
	15,000 contained an applicant of mixed origin;
	22,000 contained an applicant of Indian origin;
	58,000 contained an applicant of Pakistani/Bangladeshi origin;
	34,000 contained an applicant of black origin;
	14,000 contained an applicant of Chinese or other origin.
	The individual ethnic groups are not additive, since couple families with applicants from different ethnic groups will appear twice.
	There were a further 522,000 families in receipt of working tax credit who it was not possible to classify by ethnic group.
	This information is available by summing the first and fourth columns of Table 2a in HM Revenue and Customs' published “Child Tax Credit and Working Tax Credit Take-up by Ethnic Group 2004-05”. This publication is available here:
	http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20110615131426/http:/www.hmrc.gov.uk/stats/personal-tax-credits/takeup-ethnicgroup0405.pdf
	Estimates for more recent years are only available at disproportionate cost.

Working Tax Credit: Self-employed

Stephen Timms: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many prosecutions his Department has initiated for fraudulently claiming working tax credit in respect of self-employment in the most recent 12 months for which data is available.

Sajid Javid: HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) is not a prosecuting authority. Where cases do proceed to the criminal courts the prosecution is carried out by the relevant independent prosecuting authority. This is the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) in England and Wales, the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) in Scotland, and the Public Prosecution Service in Northern Ireland (PPSNI).
	In the current tax year, commencing 6 April 2012, 47 of the cases HMRC investigated for tax credit offences have progressed to prosecution and 66 convictions have been secured. Prosecution and conviction figures in any given year do not necessarily relate to the same individuals due to timing and length of case.
	These figures represent the total for all tax credit offences including those conducted and prosecuted with or on behalf of another Government Department. HMRC's management information does not include data on the employment status of individuals prosecuted for tax credit offences. To gather this information would incur disproportionate cost.

Working Tax Credit: Self-employed

Stephen Timms: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer under what circumstances someone entering self-employment and receiving working tax credit will have their tax credits deemed to have been wholly or partly overpaid once the outcome of the first year's trading is known.

Sajid Javid: An overpayment of tax credit occurs where the amount of tax credit paid for a tax year exceeds the amount of tax credit to which the claimant is entitled.
	The amount of entitlement is decided at the end of the year in question when claimants are asked to confirm their circumstances for the year.
	Self employed claimants, including those who have just completed their first year's trading, can in the first instance provide an estimate of income for the year. They then have the opportunity to confirm their actual income by the 31 January following the end of the tax year. This is in line with the obligation on the self employed to finalise their tax returns by the same date. If an actual income figure is not provided the final tax credit decision is made using the estimated income held by HMRC.

DEFENCE

Advisory Committee on Conscientious Objectors

Gemma Doyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the budget for the Advisory Committee on Conscientious Objectors for 2012-13 is.

Mark Francois: There is no budget specifically allocated for the Advisory Committee on Conscientious Objectors for 2012-13. If costs are incurred, they are met from the Ministry of Defence's Central Legal Services budget.
	The Committee meets only when a request for an appeal is received and the hearing lasts for one day. The Committee consists of a Chairman and Deputy and four ordinary members, but in practice only the quorum is invited to sit at a hearing. The quorum for a meeting is the Chairman or Deputy and two ordinary members. Committee members are only paid when their services are required. At the time of the last appeal in December 2010 the ordinary members received £200 each for the day (plus expenses). The Chairman received no payment as he was a salaried judge. The Committee's secretariat support is provided, when required, by permanent staff from Central Legal Services at no extra cost.

Armed Forces

Adam Holloway: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many full-time equivalent personnel are serving in the Army, Navy and Royal Air Force in an operational capacity; and how many full-time (a) Army, Navy and Royal Air Force and (b) civilian personnel work in his Department.

Mark Francois: The full-time trained strengths of the UK armed forces, and the number of personnel deployed on operations as at 1 December 2012 was as follows:
	
		
			 Service Total strength 
			 Royal Navy 31,940 
			 Army 96,510 
			 Royal Air Force 36,440 
			 Total 164,880 
			 Note: Where rounding has been used, sub-totals have been rounded separately and so may not equal the sums of their rounded parts. When rounding to the nearest 10, numbers ending in five have been rounded to the nearest multiple of 20 to prevent systematic bias. 
		
	
	As of 4 February 2013, there were approximately 12,500 personnel deployed on operations overseas. The precise number of personnel fluctuates on a daily basis for a variety of reasons, including mid-tour rest and recuperation, temporary absence for training, evacuation for medical reasons, the roulement of forces, visits and a range of other factors. We do not, therefore, publish actual figures for personnel deployed in theatre.
	The number of civilian personnel as at 1 January 2013 was 66,170. Military and civilian employment figures are published in the UK Armed Forces Quarterly Personnel Report and Quarterly Civilian Report.

Armed Forces: Redundancy

Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence for what reason the exemptions for armed forces personnel six months before an operational tour and six months after an operational tour which were introduced in 1993 were not introduced in the most recent tranche of redundancies in the armed forces.

Mark Francois: The regulations covering redundancies from the armed forces in 1993 were set out in Defence Council Instructions (DCIs). My officials have undertaken a thorough search of the relevant DCIs from the period 1992-95 and have been unable to locate any instructions governing exemptions, exceptions or exclusions to redundancy on the grounds of proximity to an operational tour, both in terms of timeframe and location.
	As I said in the House on 22 January 2013, Official Report, column 171, in response to the right hon. Member, in common with previous redundancy tranches following the 2010 Strategic Defence and Strategy Review, we have made important exemptions. Under the terms of the recently announced third tranche of redundancies, no one serving in a location which qualifies for an Operational Allowance on the day the redundancy notices are issued will be made redundant, unless they are applicants. Similarly, those preparing for, or recovering from such operations on the day the redundancy notices are issued will not be made redundant unless they have applied. Those deploying on Operation Herrick 18 will be informed in April this year.

Armed Forces: Redundancy

Julian Sturdy: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what resettlement support will be provided to members of the armed forces who will be made redundant in summer 2013.

Mark Francois: Assisting our former service personnel transition to civilian employment is of major importance to the Department. All service personnel selected for redundancy receive financial compensation and a comprehensive resettlement package to help them find a job and transition to life outside the armed forces. Historically, 93% of those who look for work are in full-time employment within six months of leaving the armed forces, rising to 97% after 12 months.
	Soldiers being made redundant in Tranche 3 will qualify for the normal resettlement package available to all armed forces personnel. In addition, as part of the special arrangements for redundancy all Army personnel will receive the same level of graduated resettlement time (GRT) and training to which they would have been entitled had they completed their full commission or engagement. GRT is flexible time which may be used by personnel to complete resettlement activities such as training courses, civilian work attachments and resettlement activities such as job and house hunting. Also, to help families find accommodation, they may retain their service families' accommodation for up to 93 days after their discharge.
	The resettlement package includes financial related briefings covering budget and debt management, specialist housing advice, and advice on the importance of seeking medical help, including the ability to access mental health services should they feel it necessary.
	Further support is available through the Career Transition Partnership in the form of training courses; career transition workshops; employment and future career advice; assistance with curriculum vitae writing and job preparation; vocational training; and a job-search/recruitment facility.

Armed Forces: Redundancy

Gemma Doyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many service personnel are liable for redundancy under tranche 3 from the infantry; and at what rank such service personnel are.

Mark Francois: holding answer 11 February 2013
	The Army Redundancy Programme Tranche 3 announcement in January 2013 highlighted the requirement for up to 5,300 personnel to be made redundant. Based on current planning assumptions, this figure includes 1,082 personnel from the Infantry. A breakdown by rank is as follows:
	
		
			 Rank Number of personnel 
			 Lieutenant Colonel 11 
			 Major 25 
			 Captain 81 
			 Warrant Officer Class 1 5 
			 Staff Sergeant 76 
			 Sergeant 230 
			 Lance Corporal 309 
			 Private 345 
		
	
	These numbers may change in response to changing operational requirements, other emerging business needs, and to maximise the number of applicants. This applies to all redundancy figures under the requirement for Tranche 3.

Armed Forces: Sexual Offences

Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many serving armed forces personnel have been convicted of (a) rape, (b) sexual assault and (c) assault by penetration by a court martial since 2005 and (i) placed on the Violent and Sex Offenders Register and (ii) not placed on the Violent and Sex Offenders Register; and if he will make a statement.

Mark Francois: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 30 November 2012, Official Report, column 55W, regarding the number of serving armed forces personnel who have been convicted of rape or sexual assault. The figures provided for the number of personnel convicted of sexual assault included any personnel who have been convicted of assault by penetration.
	As defined in section three of the 2006 Sex Offences Act, notification requirements flow from the conviction and therefore if a serving member of the armed forces was convicted of rape or sexual assault they would automatically be subject to the notification requirements.
	As of 6 February 2013, the Department has been notified of four Royal Navy, 17 Army and two Royal Air Force personnel who are on the Sex Offenders Register for various sexual offences.

Armed Forces: Sexual Offences

Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many serving armed forces personnel have received a police caution for sexual offences in each year since 2005; and if he will make a statement.

Mark Francois: The Ministry of Defence does not hold reliable data on the number of serving armed forces personnel who have received a police caution for sexual offences. The Department is aware, however, that as at 8 February 2013, there are five serving personnel (one Royal Navy, three Army and one RAF) on the Violent and Sexual Offender Register (ViSOR) who have received police cautions for sexual offences and are subject to notification requirements.

Armed Forces: Teachers

Gemma Doyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  what the cost to his Department was in 2012-13 of the Troops to Teachers scheme;
	(2)  how many former serving personnel have (a) registered with the Troops to Teachers scheme and (b) successfully secured employment as a teacher through the Troops to Teachers scheme;
	(3)  what his Department spent on the Troops to Teachers scheme in (a) 2010-11 and (b) 2011-12.

Mark Francois: Troops to Teachers is important to the Ministry of Defence (MOD) as a means to help our service leavers as they undergo resettlement and seek second careers, as well as to benefit the education sector.
	The Department has been collaborating closely with the Department for Education (DFE) and the Teaching Agency in developing the DFE's Troops to Teachers programme. However, we are not a delivery partner nor accountable for delivering the programme's outcomes: that is a matter for DFE and their contractors.
	The MOD does not hold records of service leaver registrations to the programme, and there is no cost to the Department.

Army: Training

Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  what steps will be necessary to make the Army's training estate compliant with the Future Character of Conflict concepts;
	(2)  what estimate he has made of the cost of sustaining the existing training estate; and what resources have been allocated to fund this;
	(3)  what estimate he has made of the cost of enhancing the training infrastructure in order to fulfil the Army 2020 plan; and what resources have been allocated to fund this;
	(4)  what estimate he has made of the suitability of the Army's training estate for the Army 2020 plan;
	(5)  what progress he is making in (a) developing new and (b) enhancing existing training facilities necessary to fulfil the Army 2020 plan.

Mark Francois: Army 2020 will inevitably impact on the MOD training estate. It is too early at this time to say exactly what these impacts may be.

Astute Class Submarines

Thomas Docherty: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what estimate the Chief Secretary to the Treasury has made of the cost of (a) design, (b) manufacture and (c) procurement of additional Astute class submarines, above the seven that are planned.

Philip Dunne: The 2010 strategic defence and security review (Cm 7948) committed the Ministry of Defence to delivering seven Astute class submarines. There are no plans for additional Astute class submarines.

Defence Fire Service: Retirement

David Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  what his policy is on the retirement age for staff of the Defence Fire and Rescue Service; and if he has any plans to change the retirement age for such staff from 68 years old;
	(2)  what medical evidence has been used by his Department to inform decisions on changes to the retirement age for staff of the Defence Fire and Rescue Service.

Mark Francois: Although the Ministry of Defence (MOD) abolished its policy of a contractual retirement age for the majority of its civil servants in 2010, the Defence Fire and Rescue Service continues to operate a retirement age of 65. This decision was based on academic research and drawn up under the guidance of Defence Medical Services.
	Defence firefighters are civil servants and, as such, are subject to the rules of the Principal Civil Service Pension Scheme. Since 2007 all new entrants have been subject to a normal pension age of 65 and this applies equally to MOD firefighters.

Gurkhas: Redundancy

Gemma Doyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many service personnel are liable for redundancy under tranche 3 from the Brigade of Gurkhas; and at what rank such service personnel are.

Mark Francois: holding answer 11 February 2013
	The Army Redundancy Programme Tranche 3 announcement in January 2013 highlighted the requirement for up to 5,300 personnel to be made redundant. Based on current planning assumptions, this figure includes 304 personnel from the Brigade of Gurkhas. A breakdown by rank is as follows:
	
		
			  Number 
			 Captain 1 
			 Staff Sergeant 1 
			 Sergeant 9 
			 Corporal 43 
			 Lance Corporal 96 
			 Private 154 
		
	
	These numbers may change in response to changing operational requirements, other emerging business needs, and to maximise the number of applicants. This applies to all redundancy figures under the requirement for Tranche 3.

Joint Strike Fighter Aircraft

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the cost was of the decision to cancel orders for the F-35B joint strike fighter and order the F-35C and then reversing the decision.

Philip Dunne: There have been no cancellations of orders for the F-35B, or any cancelled orders of the F-35C on the UK F-35 programme as a result of the 2010 strategic defence and security review (SDSR) decision or the subsequent reversal of this decision.
	Before the SDSR, the Ministry of Defence had ordered three F-35B aircraft. Two have been delivered and the third will be delivered this year.

Military Aid

Russell Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what partnerships are in place for UK forces to train overseas with other nations.

Andrew Robathan: The UK has a large number of agreements with allies and partners which permit training for military personnel overseas. This ranges from large-scale exercises to individuals participating on military academic training programmes. Regular programmes include both multi-lateral arrangements under the auspices of NATO and bilateral agreements with, for example, US, Canada and Kenya.

Military Bases: USA

Fabian Hamilton: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when the last time a prosecution was brought using the military land byelaws on the US bases (a) Menwith Hill, (b) Lakenheath, (c) Mildenhall, (d) Molesworth and (e) RAF Fylingdales; and when the last successful prosecution was in each such case.

Mark Francois: The information in the following table reflects the data held by the Ministry of Defence police:
	
		
			 Station Last time prosecution brought Successful prosecutions 
			 Menwith Hill *1 0 
			 Lakenheath 0 n/a 
			 Mildenhall 0 n/a 
			 Molesworth 0 n/a 
			 RAF Fylingdales 0 n/a 
			 * In 2003 
		
	
	The data has been collated from the Ministry of Defence Police Crime and Intelligence recording system which dates back to 1999.

Military Bases: USA

Fabian Hamilton: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence for what reasons military land byelaws are being introduced at the American base at RAF Croughton; and what assessment he has made of the use of the Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005 as an alternative to such byelaws.

Mark Francois: Military land byelaws are proposed to be introduced at RAF Croughton to enable controlled public access to military land, where access would otherwise not be permitted due to safety and security concerns. Croughton is already a designated site under the Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005, but this prohibits all public access to the designated area and is designed to protect the site against criminal trespass.
	The proposed byelaws will dovetail with the Serious Organised Crime and Police Act designation to provide layered protection for the site while allowing access under controlled conditions.

Nuclear Weapons

Thomas Docherty: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether a cost analysis has been done of deferral of the main gate decision on the nuclear deterrent.

Philip Hammond: As part of the 2010 strategic defence and security review (Cm 7948), the MOD undertook a value for money study of the nuclear deterrent. To drive value for money, it was concluded, along with other decisions, that we should extend the life of the current Vanguard class submarines and re-profile the programme to build replacement submarines. It was also concluded that, to deliver the first Successor submarine in 2028, a Main Gate decision was required around 2016. The changes identified by the value for money review delivered £3.2 billion of savings and deferrals over the subsequent 10 years.

Porton Down: Animal Experiments

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many of the experiments currently being conducted in collaboration with the US at the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory Porton Down would be unlicensed if they took place in the US.

Philip Dunne: None. It is MOD policy that we will not undertake any work involving the use of animals that could not be undertaken in any other country under their regulatory and legal framework for experimentation on animals.

Porton Down: Animal Experiments

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence for what reasons the research being conducted at the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory Porton Down facility is being shared with the US.

Philip Dunne: The White Paper, National Security through Technology, (Cmd 8278) recognises that working with another nation allows us to maximise our capabilities, and that collaboration with the US offers access to cutting edge research and technologies and improved interoperability with our major ally.

Porton Down: Animal Experiments

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many of the animals which are subjects of research at the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory Porton Down facility have been part of more than (a) one experiment and (b) three experiments.

Philip Dunne: Of all animals used in experiments during 2011 (the latest year for which Home Office figures are complete), 12 non-human primates were used in more than one experiment but not in more than three experiments.
	An additional four non-human primates were used in a single experiment in 2011. These same four animals had previously been used in three experiments in 2010 (four experiments in total). No other species were used in more than one experiment during 2011.

Porton Down: Animal Experiments

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the origin was of the primates being experimented on at the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory Porton Down.

Philip Dunne: Overall, a very significant proportion of the non-human primates used by DSTL at Porton Down are bred within the DSTL colony or what was the DSTL colony and now is owned by the Health Protection Agency. This reflects our commitment to animal welfare by ensuring that we take responsibility for the breeding and husbandry of these animals rather than having them transported from around the world. In turn, we can then maximise their environmental enrichment and general care and know that the animals to be used in experimentation are of the highest quality and produced under ethical regimes regulated by the Home Office.
	However, in January 2011, and as a result of the closure of the Medical Research Council Unit in Edinburgh, DSTL accepted a total of 39 animals into its care at the DSTL Porton Down colony. Since January 2011, a total of 10 of these animals have been used in experiments conducted at DSTL Porton Down and appropriately returned as such under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act to date.

Porton Down: Animal Experiments

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many of the animals which are subjects of experiments at the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory Porton Down facility have died as a result of those experiments; and how many such animals have been humanely put down in each of the last five years.

Philip Dunne: Dstl does not hold a central record of this information as it is not required for submission to the Home Office under the Scientific (Animal Procedures) Act.

Public Expenditure

Russell Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much and what proportion of his Department's budget is allocated to frontline tasks and spending.

Philip Hammond: There is no standard definition of "front line". However, force elements, key enablers, and standing commitments total around 46% of the budget; another 40% is equipment and support.

Reserve Forces

Alison Seabeck: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the strength is of the Territorial Army and Reserves; and what the projected strength is in January (a) 2014, (b) 2015, (c) 2016, (d) 2017 and (e) 2018.

Bridget Phillipson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what estimate he has made of the strength of the reserve forces.

Mark Francois: holding answers 1 and 5 February 2013
	The Navy's Maritime Reserves (Royal Naval Reserve and Royal Marines Reserve) were at a total strength (trained and untrained) of 2,570 at 1 April 2012 and will grow to a trained strength of 3,100 by 2018.
	The Territorial Army was at a total (trained and untrained) strength of 26,640 at 1 April 2012 and will grow to a trained strength of 30,000 by 2018.
	The Royal Auxiliary Air Force was at a total strength (trained and untrained) of 1,360 at 1 April 2012 and will grow to a trained strength of 1,800 by April 2018.
	A comprehensive statistical breakdown of Reserve strength is provided through Tri-Service Publication (TSP) 7 which can be accessed at the following website:
	http://www.dasa.mod.uk
	Figures as at 1 April 2013 will be published on 23 May 2013.
	Interim targets are subject to ongoing consideration in light of the recent Green Paper consultation.

Reserve Forces: Social Security Benefits

Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will put in place measures to monitor the number of reservists who are claimants of Government benefits.

Mark Francois: holding answer 28 January 2013
	The claiming of benefits is a private matter on which the Ministry of Defence has no requirement to collect information. Where it is the case that policy with respect to a benefit potentially affects members of the armed forces, regular or reserve, the Department will discuss this with the relevant Government Department as necessary.

Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers: Redundancy

Gemma Doyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many service personnel are liable for redundancy under tranche 3 from the Corps of Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers; and at what rank such service personnel are.

Mark Francois: holding answer 11 February 2013
	The Army Redundancy Programme Tranche 3 announcement in January 2013 highlighted the requirement for up to 5,300 personnel to be made redundant. Based on current planning assumptions, this figure includes 461 personnel from the Corps of Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers. A breakdown by rank is as follows:
	
		
			 Rank Number of personnel 
			 Lieutenant Colonel 2 
			 Major 4 
			 Warrant Officer Class 2 5 
			 Staff Sergeant 69 
			 Sergeant 87 
			 Corporal 94 
			 Lance Corporal 80 
			 Private 120 
		
	
	These numbers may change in response to changing operational requirements, other emerging business needs, and to maximise the number of applicants. This applies to all redundancy figures under the requirement for Tranche 3.

Royal Engineers: Redundancy

Gemma Doyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many people are liable for redundancy under tranche 3 from the Corps of Royal Engineers; and at what rank such service personnel are.

Mark Francois: holding answer 11 February 2013
	The Army Redundancy Programme Tranche 3 announcement in January 2013 highlighted the requirement for up to 5,300 personnel to be made redundant. Based on current planning assumptions, this figure includes 804 personnel from the Corps of Royal Engineers. A breakdown by rank is as follows:
	
		
			 Rank Number of personnel 
			 Lieutenant Colonel 8 
			 Captain 18 
			 Warrant Officer Class 1 2 
			 Staff Sergeant 30 
			 Sergeant 23 
			 Corporal 72 
			 Lance Corporal 132 
			 Private 519 
		
	
	These numbers may change in response to changing operational requirements, other emerging business needs, and to maximise the number of applicants. This applies to all redundancy figures under the requirement for Tranche 3.

Staff

Fabian Hamilton: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the annual cost is to his Department of the Military Land Byelaws Review Team; how many people are employed in this team; and what the qualifications are of each such staff member.

Mark Francois: The Defence Infrastructure Organisation Byelaws Review Team consists of five staff at an annual cost of £160,000. There are no specific qualifications required for these positions. The team are additionally supported by Ministry of Defence legal advisers.

Trident

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will estimate the proportion of the new defence equipment budget which would be allocated to Trident replacement in the 2020s should a like-for-like deterrent be commissioned; and if he will make a statement.

Philip Dunne: The stated total costs for the replacement of nuclear deterrent published in the 2006 White Paper were: £11 billion to £14 billion for the submarine; £2 billion to £3 billion for the warhead; and £2 billion to £3 billion for infrastructure. This totals £15 billion to £20 billion with all costs at 2006-07 constant prices. Current forecast costs indicate that we remain within the 2006 White Paper estimates of £11 billion to £14 billion for the successor platform costs, assuming a four boat fleet. The warhead and infrastructure elements have not yet obtained Initial Gate approval.
	On 18 May 2011, Official Report, column 351, the approval of the Future Deterrent Submarine Initial Gate was announced. This has given the approval to commence with the assessment phase concluding with a Main Gate decision in 2016.
	As stated in the White Paper, The Future of the United Kingdom's Nuclear Deterrent (Cm 6994) published in December 2006, we expect that once the new fleet of SSBNs comes into service that the in-service costs of the UK's nuclear deterrent, which will include AWE's costs, will be similar to today (around 5% to 6% of the defence budget).

Trident

Thomas Docherty: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many meetings (a) he and (b) his Ministers have had on the Trident Alternatives Review.

Philip Hammond: holding answer 11 February 2013
	The Alternatives Review was established to assist the Liberal Democrats in making the case for alternatives to the Government's policy of maintaining a continuous at sea submarine-based nuclear deterrent, based on the Trident missile delivery system. The Review is led by Cabinet Office officials and overseen by the Chief Secretary to the Treasury.
	I have attended one formal meeting on the Alternatives Review. None of my current Ministers have attended any such meetings.

Veterans: Higher Education

Gordon Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the written ministerial statement of 22 January 2013, on armed forces redundancy scheme tranche 3, what support his Department will offer to personnel made redundant who wish to enter further or higher education.

Mark Francois: holding answer 25 January 2013
	All personnel being made redundant under Tranche 3 are eligible to apply for the publicly funded Further and Higher Education (FE/HE) support scheme, subject to them meeting the published criteria, chief among which is being registered for the Enhanced Learning Credit (ELC) scheme.
	The ELC scheme complements the existing Standard Learning Credit scheme which provides financial support to personnel while still serving. ELC assists eligible personnel with payment towards the cost of higher-level learning. Level 3 or above on the National Qualifications Framework or Qualifications and Credit Framework. Personnel make a personal contribution of 20% of the total course fees and can receive a single payment, in each of a maximum of three separate financial years, of up to £1,000 or £2,000 depending on qualifying scheme membership to cover up to a maximum of 80% of course fees.
	Service personnel can, and do, use this allowance to pursue university degree courses across a wide range of subjects. The ELC scheme is available to redundees for up to 10 years after they leave the armed forces.

WORK AND PENSIONS

Autism

Chris Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what representations he has received from disability charities on the effect of changes to universal credit on people with autism.

Mark Hoban: Ministers meet regularly with a wide range of disability organisations to discuss the impact of universal credit. However, there have been no meetings with organisations to specifically discuss the effect of universal credit on people with autism.

Autism

Chris Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what proportion of adults with autism claim out of work benefits.

Mark Hoban: The information as requested is not available.

Fracking: Industrial Health and Safety

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many (a) full-time and (b) part-time staff of the Health and Safety Executive are working on cases relating to shale gas; and if he will make a statement.

Mark Hoban: The Health and Safety Executive has six full-time specialist wells inspectors who have responsibility for regulating well engineering and operations activities.
	This work covers shale gas wells and all other types of wells drilled with a view to the extraction of petroleum, both onshore or offshore. Around 5% of this resource is currently being spent on shale gas issues.

Housing Benefit

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Birmingham, Selly Oak of 23 January 2013, Official Report, column 340W, on housing, what estimate he has made of the amount of supported and sheltered accommodation that falls outside the definition of supported exempt accommodation; for what reasons all supported and sheltered housing is not exempt from changes being applied to the under-occupancy penalty; and if he will make a statement.

Steve Webb: The information requested is not available.
	The most recent information on the number of people in supported “exempt accommodation” was in the DWP research report ‘“Exempt’ and supported accommodation” published in December 2010.
	The consultation document “Housing Benefit Reform—Supported Housing” (Cm 8152, July 2011) explained the Government's approach to supporting housing costs in supported accommodation and proposals for reform.

Housing Benefit

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment he has made of whether there is a match between the number of available properties in the social housing sector (a) in Brighton and Hove local authority area and (b) nationally to enable tenants to move to accommodation of a smaller size within the social housing sector, if they are affected by the under-occupancy changes; and if he will make a statement.

Steve Webb: The information requested is not available.
	There are a number of options available to meet shortfalls in housing benefit below rent resulting from the social sector under-occupation measure. For example, this could include increasing working hours, taking in a lodger, or moving to smaller accommodation in either the social or private sector. It is for individual claimants to determine what is the best approach for them.

Housing Benefit

Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what steps he is taking to ensure that those who choose to move to smaller housing to avoid having to pay under-occupancy penalties will be able to find suitably sized accommodation.

Steve Webb: The size and availability of social housing stock varies across the country, as will demand for different sized property.
	Most authorities have a mixture of different sized properties within their stock and they will inevitably have overcrowded households living in one and two bedroom properties, people in temporary accommodation or families on the housing waiting list living in the private rented sector. All of which create pressures on local authorities that can be alleviated through more under-occupied households moving.
	This measure however is not about forcing people to move. We expect many households will prefer to remain where they are and will find a way of making up the shortfall, in the same way that those living in the private rented sector in properties that are too large do.

Housing Benefit: Brighton

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the average reduction in housing benefit for recipients resident in (a) Brighton Pavilion constituency and (b) Brighton and Hove local authority area following the under-occupancy changes due to come into effect in April 2013.

Steve Webb: The information requested is not available.
	Regional figures were included in the impact assessment which can be found at:
	http://www.dwp.gov.uk/docs/social-sector-housing-under-occupation-wr2011-ia.pdf

Housing Benefit: Copeland

Jamie Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many residents of Copeland constituency will be affected by the under-occupancy penalty for social housing tenants.

Steve Webb: The information requested is not available.
	Regional figures were included in the impact assessment which can be found at:
	http://www.dwp.gov.uk/docs/social-sector-housing-under-occupation-wr2011-ia.pdf

Housing: Bristol

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much of the £30 million discretionary housing payment funding in 2013-14 for those affected by the social size criteria will be allocated to Bristol City Council; and how this share was calculated.

Steve Webb: The total Government contribution towards Discretionary Housing Payments for 2013-14 in Bristol is £1,137,227.
	£213,441 of this relates to the additional £30 million allocated to the Discretionary Housing Payment fund for those impacted by the size criteria in the social sector.
	This was calculated by dividing the £30 million at a regional level in proportion to total forecast benefit savings from the social sector size criteria measure.
	Allocations to local authorities within each region were based on 2011-12 housing benefit expenditure in relation to working age social rented sector claimants in each local authority.

Incapacity Benefit

Jonathan Reynolds: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  how many incapacity benefit claimants in Stalybridge and Hyde constituency have been reassessed since 2010;
	(2)  how many incapacity benefit claimants have been reassessed since May 2010; and how many such people have been placed in the support group or the work-related activity group of employment and support allowance.

Mark Hoban: The Department regularly publishes Official Statistics on the reassessment of incapacity benefit claimants for employment and support allowance. The latest publication was released in January 2013 and can be found here:
	http://research.dwp.gov.uk/asd/workingage/index.php?page=esa_ibr
	This publication includes all outcomes for Great Britain as a whole and also broken down by local authority. Constituency level information is not available.

Incapacity Benefit

Sheila Gilmore: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many incapacity benefit claimants who have been assessed for employment and support allowance have been placed in the work-related activity group; how many such claimants did not undergo a face-to-face assessment with an Atos Healthcare professional; how many have lodged an appeal; and how many have had their decision overturned.

Mark Hoban: The Department regularly publishes official statistics on the reassessment of incapacity benefit claimants for employment and support allowance. The latest publication was released in January 2013 and can be found here:
	http://research.dwp.gov.uk/asd/workingage/index.php?page=esa_ibr
	This publication shows all the available data on the number of Support Group and Work Related Activity Group decisions. It does not include the number of claimants who undergo a face-to-face assessment or those who are given a paper-based assessment. This information is not readily available and has not previously been published as official statistics.
	When someone claiming incapacity benefits is reassessed for ESA, they will only have to undergo a face-to-face work capability assessment (WCA) if there is insufficient evidence for a paper-based WCA to be carried out.
	Information on appeal outcomes for incapacity benefit reassessments is not yet available.

Jobseeker's Allowance

Liam Byrne: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  how many people over the age of 25 years have been claiming jobseeker's allowance for more than two years, by ethnicity;
	(2)  how many people aged 18 to 24 years have been claiming jobseeker's allowance for more than one year, by ethnicity.

Mark Hoban: Statistics on how many claimants were in receipt of jobseeker's allowance for over one or two years, split by age and ethnicity can be found at:
	https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/default.asp
	Guidance for users is available at:
	https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/home/newuser.asp

Jobseeker's Allowance

Tessa Jowell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will provide the data to the Library which will enable it to continue to calculate the number of jobseeker's allowance claimants per Jobcentre Plus vacancy, in the light of the unavailability of this data following the introduction of the new job search service, Universal Jobmatch in November 2012.

Mark Hoban: The vacancy data required to calculate the number of jobseeker’s allowance claimants per Jobcentre Plus vacancy is not available and cannot be placed in the Library.
	The replacement of the Jobcentre Plus system of vacancy-taking with the new universal jobmatch service inevitably meant that existing comparisons would no longer be available, since the series for unfilled Jobcentre Plus vacancies ceased to exist. Universal jobmatch is a major reform that brings significant benefits to jobseekers and employers alike. Headline statistics—which are already available via the Directgov website:
	https://jobsearch.direct.gov.uk/Reports/Reports.aspx
	show that nationally over 10,000 new vacancies a day are reported to universal jobmatch.
	Headline figures on the total number of unfilled vacancies at a point in time are published by the Office for National Statistics, based on a regular survey of employers. The sample size of the survey is too small to allow information to be published below national level and does not identify which vacancies are held by Jobcentre Plus. Some users have previously attempted to fill these gaps using administrative data on the number of unfilled vacancies held by Jobcentre Plus. The Department recognises that there remains a demand for administrative data on unfilled vacancies. The intention has been and remains that broadly similar information to that available under the previous system will be introduced over time as resources allow.
	It is important to note that comparisons of the number of people unemployed and the number of unfilled vacancies need to be interpreted carefully. Using a snapshot of vacancies at a point in time misses the dynamism of the labour market and the regular turnover of new vacancies being notified as existing opportunities are filled. Such snap-shots also typically miss the jobs that people can access in the wider labour market: for example those notified through other recruitment channels or filled by direct approaches to employers or word of mouth.

Natural Gas: Storage

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 15 January 2013, Official Report, columns 711-12W, on natural gas: storage, what steps have been taken by the developers of the Stublach Gas storage project to (a) ensure and (b) demonstrate the integrity of the caverns.

Mark Hoban: The developers are required to make safety demonstrations during the development of the project in the form of safety reports. The HSE has just completed its review of the pre-operations report. Sufficient demonstrations have been made in relation to cavern integrity for operations to proceed. HSE will inspect the development to ensure that the precautions set out in the safety reports are actually implemented in practice.

Natural Gas: Storage

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will direct the Health and Safety Executive to publish in full the safety and geotechnical reports on the Stublach Gas storage project.

Mark Hoban: I am satisfied that the Health and Safety Executive has made and will continue to make available all information that it is empowered to release in answering requests under the Environmental Information Regulations.

Natural Gas: Storage

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment he has made of the geology and safety aspects of the Stublach Gas storage project that are considered to constitute a risk to national security.

Mark Hoban: The responsibility to undertake geological surveys lies with the developer of the gas storage site. HSE's remit is the health and safety of those who may be affected by the project. HSE is not aware of any risk to national security arising from the development of a gas storage site at Stublach.

Natural Gas: Storage

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what arrangements are in place to ensure that underground gas storage operators demonstrate and ensure their ability to meet all financial responsibilities should they be determined to be liable for an underground gas storage failure.

Mark Hoban: Employers are required by law to provide insurance cover to compensate their employees in the event of an accident. There is no similar formal requirement for the operator of a gas storage facility, or any other similar facility, to hold insurance or make any other financial arrangement to meet their responsibilities; financial liabilities in the event of an accident would be a matter for the civil courts.

Pensioners

John Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what steps he is taking to improve pensioner wellbeing in (a) Glasgow North West constituency, (b) Glasgow, (c) Scotland and (d) the UK.

Steve Webb: Current pensioners are a priority for the Government and we have introduced the triple lock to ensure that the basic state pension rises by the highest of earnings, prices and 2.5% each year. As a result the basic state pension will increase by 2.5% in April 2013, subject to agreement in Parliament. This will take the value of the basic state pension higher relative to average earnings than at any time in the last 20 years. Our latest estimates are that the average person reaching state pension age in 2013 can expect to receive an additional £12,000 in basic state pension over their retirement than under previous policies of uprating by prices.
	We have also protected key benefits for older people including: free eye tests, free prescription charges, free off peak bus travel, free television licences for those aged over 75 and winter fuel payments. In winter 2011-12, the winter fuel payment helped over 12.6 million older people with their fuel bills, including around 1.1 million payments made to people in Scotland.
	In addition we have permanently increased cold weather payments from £8.50 to £25.00, which go to vulnerable people on income related benefits, including pensioners on pension credit. For winter 2011-12, 5.2 million cold weather payments were made, of which an estimated 72,500 were in Scotland.
	We are also reforming pensions for today's working people. The single-tier pension will deliver a simple and fair state pension set above the basic level of means-tested support, providing clarity and confidence to better support saving for retirement. Providing this platform for saving also underpins private pension reform introduced from 1 October 2012. This makes automatic enrolment into a workplace pension mandatory, making the default decision a decision to save. We have abolished the default retirement age, meaning most people can now retire when the time is right for them, enabling people to work and save for longer.
	Wellbeing is not just about money, though, and we have introduced a material deprivation indicator as an additional way of understanding more about the nature of older people's experience. This enables us to examine both financial and non financial elements such as social isolation and ill-health to complement the existing income-based measures of poverty.

Social Rented Housing

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many rented homes in the social sector are under-occupied in each local authority area.

Steve Webb: The information requested is not available.
	Regional figures on under-occupation among working age housing benefit claimants in the social sector were included in the impact assessment which can be found at:
	http://www.dwp.gov.uk/docs/social-sector-housing-under-occupation-wr2011-ia.pdf

Social Security Benefits

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what discussions his Department has had with the Department for Communities and Local Government on the impact of public library closures on the access to computers needed for the implementation of his Department's proposed changes to benefits.

Mark Hoban: DWP and DCLG are working closely together to ensure the successful delivery of upcoming welfare reform.
	We recognise that some claimants will not have access to the internet from home, so we are installing internet access devices in our Jobcentres. Jobcentre staff will be available to provide claimants with any assistance required in using these devices.

Staff

Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many staff were employed by his Department in each of the last five years; and at what grade or pay band such staff were appointed.

Mark Hoban: I have provided my hon. Friend with the total number of staff employed in DWP for the period year ending December 2008 to December 2012, and broken down by grade.
	The figures are point in time at the end of December each year and in line with Office for National Statistics (ONS) definitions.
	
		
			  31 December 2008 31 December 2009 31 December 2010 31 December 2011 31 December 2012 
			 A/AA 4,778 4,652 3,861 3,222 2,899 
			 B/AO 50,468 59,071 52,395 46,681 48,821 
			 C/EO 37,229 44,602 42,190 39,087 42,047 
			 D/HEO 6,933 8,033 8,179 7,489 7,596 
			 E/SEO 2,544 2,845 2,882 2,569 2,660 
			 F/Grade 7 1,395 1,637 1,659 1,432 1,502 
			 G/Grade 6 545 667 699 612 599 
			 SCS 271 290 273 219 226 
			 Unknown 11 27 27 20 — 
			 Other — — — — 137 
			 Total 104,662 121,824 112,135 101,331 106,487 
			 Notes: 1. December 2008 includes the Rent Service in the total but it is not included in the grade breakdown (488 head count). 2. December 2012 includes Child Maintenance Group which joined the Department from August 2012 (8,503 head count).

Travel and Subsistence Payments

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many chairs in his Department's arm's length bodies are paid on the basis that they are exempt from personally meeting any tax liability in respect of travel and subsistence payments for attending meetings at the offices of the arm's length body.

Mark Hoban: The Department for Work and Pensions does not hold this information centrally and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.

Travel and Subsistence Payments

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many senior officials of his Department's arm's length bodies are paid on the basis that they are exempt from personally meeting any tax liability in respect of travel and subsistence payments for attending meetings at the offices of the arm's-length body.

Mark Hoban: The Department for Work and Pensions does not hold this information centrally and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.

Universal Credit

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what recent progress he has made on confirming the details of exceptional payments under universal credit.

Mark Hoban: A minority of universal credit claimants may require alternative payment arrangements to help them manage their money. These might include paying the rent directly to the landlord, making payments more frequently than monthly or splitting the payment within the household.
	Alternative payment arrangements will be considered on a case by case basis, with each situation assessed on individually. These arrangements will be time-limited and delivered in conjunction with appropriate budgeting support to ensure claimants make a successful transition over time to monthly budgeting wherever possible.

Welfare Tax Credits

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what recent discussions he has had with HM Revenue and Customs about tax credit support for Work Programme participants entering self-employment.

Mark Hoban: Compliance with tax credit rules is a matter for HMRC.

Welfare Tax Credits

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether he will consider the case for an early check of the viability of the business plan of a Work Programme participant entering self-employment to guard against the risk of incurring a large working tax credit overpayment.

Mark Hoban: A core principle of the Work Programme is that providers offer the right support for individuals to enable them to enter work. This includes support and advice on becoming self employed. Work Programme providers support individuals to develop viable business plans.
	Checks against business plans for the award of tax credits and any subsequent overpayment of tax credits are a matter for HMRC. The DWP is not involved in decisions relating to tax credits.

Work Capability Assessment

Sheila Gilmore: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether decision makers can send cases back to Atos Healthcare professionals when they believe that a face-to-face assessment or additional written evidence is needed.

Mark Hoban: The contract between DWP and Atos allows for decision makers to send cases back to Atos if they believe a face to face assessment is required and also to obtain written advice from an Atos Healthcare professional when necessary.

Work Capability Assessment

Sheila Gilmore: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what guidance his Department provides to (a) Atos Healthcare professionals and (b) decision makers on when to carry out work capability assessments without a face-to-face examination.

Mark Hoban: No guidance is provided to decision makers as it is primarily the responsibly of the ATOS Healthcare professional to consider the need for a face-to-face assessment.
	Full guidance for Atos Healthcare professionals is contained in the ESA Filework Guidelines for Healthcare Professionals, and is summarised in the WCA Handbook
	http://www.dwp.gov.uk/docs/wca-handbook.pdf

Work Programme: West Midlands

Jack Dromey: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what reduction there has been in long-term unemployment since the start of the Work programme in (a) Birmingham, Erdington constituency and (b) Birmingham.

Mark Hoban: Since June 2011 the number of people claiming jobseeker's allowance for more than a year has risen from 875 to 1,755 in Birmingham, Erdington and from 8,380 to 16,455 in Birmingham LAD. However, nationally the number of people unemployed for over 12 months on the broader ILO measure fell by 5,000 in the latest quarter.

HOUSE OF COMMONS COMMISSION

Core Statutory Obligations

Priti Patel: To ask the hon. Member for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross, representing the House of Commons Commission, what the House of Commons Commission's core statutory obligations are; and what estimate he has of the annual cost of delivering each such obligation.

John Thurso: Under the House of Commons (Administration) Act 1978 the core functions of the House of Commons Commission are: to appoint the staff in the House Departments, and ensure that their terms and conditions are kept broadly in line with those in the Home Civil Service; each year to prepare and lay before the House of Commons an Estimate for the cost of the House Departments and other costs incurred for the service of the House; and to appoint the Accounting Officer. These are administrative functions conducted as part of the routine management of the House and a separate cost cannot be assigned. Further information on the work of the Commission can be found in its annual report, published pursuant to section 1(3) of the Act:
	http://www.parliament.uk/documents/commons-commission/commission-annual-report-2011-12.pdf
	or in the annual accounts.

Palace of Westminster: Emergency Services

Kate Hoey: To ask the hon. Member for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross, representing the House of Commons Commission, how many times fire crews from (a) Lambeth and (b) Westminster attended incidents at the Palace of Westminster in the last five years.

John Thurso: The number of attendances made by the London Fire Brigade to the parliamentary estate can be provided from 1 April 2010, when the responsibility for fire safety protection transferred from the Metropolitan Police Service to the House of Commons. There is no requirement for the Parliamentary Fire Risk Management Team to record which fire station attends incidents on the parliamentary estate, although this information has been recorded in the 2012-13 financial year.
	
		
			 Number of attendances made by the London Fire Brigade to the Palace of Westminster 
			  Attendances 
			 2010-11 5 
			 2011-12 3 
			 2012-13 to date (1)2 
			 (1) Lambeth 0; Westminster 1; other 1

WOMEN AND EQUALITIES

Marriage

David Anderson: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities 
	(1)  what recent representations she has received on the adequacy of her proposed protections aimed at ensuring that churches and clergy who do not wish to carry out same sex marriage ceremonies are not compelled to do so;
	(2)  what discussions she has had with representatives of the churches and clergy regarding protections for (a) churches and clergy who do not wish to carry out same sex marriage ceremonies and (b) workers who have a conscientious objection to measures contained on the Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Bill;
	(3)  if she will take steps to put robust measures in place to ensure that churches and clergy who do not wish to carry out same sex marriage ceremonies are not compelled to do so;
	(4)  whether, in the light of views expressed by hon. Members in the debate on Second Reading of the Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Bill, she plans to bring forward further proposals to strengthen protection for churches and clergy who do not wish to carry out same sex marriage ceremonies.

Helen Grant: holding answer 11 February 2013
	We have always been clear that no religious organisation or individual minister will be forced to marry same sex couples. The Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Bill, which had its Second Reading on 5 February, contains a quadruple lock of religious protections which deliver on this commitment. We have had detailed discussions with a wide range of religious organisations, including the Church of England, as we developed the Bill, and we are confident the religious protections are robust and effective. The Church of England has said:
	“If the Bill proceeds into law it is essential that the various ‘locks’ in the Bill are preserved as drafted.”
	When the Bill is in force, people will continue to be able to express their perfectly lawful views that marriage should be between a man and a woman, in the same way as they already express views about a whole range of issues—such as that civil partnerships are contrary to religious teaching, or that people should not have children outside marriage. Same-sex marriage will not be treated any differently.

Marriage

Margaret Curran: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities what provisions in the Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Bill will require a Legislative Consent Motion in the Scottish Parliament and what the purpose of those provisions are.

Helen Grant: holding answer 11 February 2013
	Paragraphs 17 and 18 of the Explanatory Notes to the Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Bill set out information about the Bill's application to Scotland and provisions in respect of which a Legislative Consent Motion may be required.

LEADER OF THE HOUSE

Written Questions

Tom Watson: To ask the Leader of the House what guidance his Department issues to all Government departments on providing answers to written parliamentary questions that refer hon. Members to websites or other published material; if he will place a copy of any such guidance in the Library; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Lansley: The Office of the Leader of the House provides guidance to all Departments on the practice of answering parliamentary questions by reference to Government websites.
	The guidance advises that the answer should give the Member the factual information requested (including supplying paper copies of the website pages), with an additional line in the answer indicating that the information is already made readily available.
	The full guide is available on the Cabinet Office website at
	http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/resource-library/guide-parliamentary-work
	A copy of the guidance relating to referring to websites has already been placed in the Library and the Office of the Leader of the House of Commons intends to review the Guide to Parliamentary Work later this year.

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

Diplomatic Service

Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs in which countries and embassies the UK has (a) increased the number of diplomats and (b) opened new diplomatic posts since May 2010.

Alistair Burt: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) is strengthening its diplomatic network significantly, deploying more staff to the fastest growing regions, upgrading existing posts and opening new ones. Nine new posts have been opened or upgraded since May 2010, in the following locations:
	
		
			 Country Post Change Date 
			 Abidjan Cote d'Ivoire Political office upgraded to embassy May 2012 
			 Antananarivo Madagascar British interests section upgraded to embassy October 2012 
			 Bishkek Kyrgyzstan New embassy July 2012 
			 Calgary Canada Trade office upgraded to consulate general September 2012 
			 Hyderabad India Trade office upgraded to deputy high commission June 2012 
			 Juba South Sudan New embassy in new sovereign state July 2011 
			 Recife Brazil Trade office upgraded to consulate general November 2011 
			 San Salvador El Salvador New embassy November 2012 
			 Vientiane Laos New embassy October 2012 
		
	
	In addition, we have announced plans to open the following UK diplomatic posts overseas by 2015:
	
		
			 Post Country Type 
			 Asuncion Paraguay New embassy 
			 Chandigarh India New deputy high commission 
			 Mogadishu Somalia New embassy 
			 Monrovia Liberia Upgrade political office to embassy 
			 Port au Prince Haiti New embassy 
		
	
	Details of further posts will be announced once planning is finalised and formal approval has been granted by the host governments.
	We are also increasing our frontline diplomatic staff in the following countries:
	Algeria;
	Angola;
	Argentina;
	Bahrain;
	Bosnia and Herzegovina;
	Brazil;
	Burma;
	Chile;
	China;
	Colombia;
	Egypt;
	Ghana;
	India;
	Indonesia;
	Israel;
	Jordan;
	Kenya;
	Kosovo;
	Libya;
	Malaysia;
	Mali;
	Mexico;
	Mongolia;
	North Korea;
	Nigeria;
	Pakistan;
	Panama;
	Peru;
	Philippines;
	Qatar;
	Saudi Arabia;
	Seychelles;
	South Africa;
	South Korea;
	Thailand;
	Tunisia;
	Turkey;
	UAE;
	Uganda;
	Vietnam.

Mongolia

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps the Government is taking to encourage a stronger bilateral trading relationship with Mongolia.

Hugo Swire: The Government is working hard to build a stronger bilateral trading relationship with Mongolia. UK Trade & Investment have recently opened an office in Ulaanbaatar. The Government has also increased the number and seniority of the British diplomats in our embassy in Ulaanbaatar to support trade and investment work.
	I hosted the Mongolian Government for 'Round Table' talks in November 2012. A number of British and Mongolian companies also attended the talks. They were able both to network and make recommendations to the two Governments on how we can better support enhanced trade.
	As my hon. Friend is aware, 2013 marks the 50th anniversary of bilateral relations between the UK and Mongolia. We hope that this anniversary and the events that both Governments have planned to mark will strengthen relations, including bilateral trade, still further.

Mongolia

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the value was of (a) imports from and (b) exports to Mongolia in each of the last five years.

Hugo Swire: The following table shows the value of imports from and exports to Mongolia in each of the last five years, according to data from HM Treasury:
	
		
			 £ 
			  Export of goods Import of goods Export of services Import of services 
			 2008 5,685,617 3,262,095 n/a n/a 
			 2009 4,166,984 4,749,047 n/a n/a 
			 2010 11,096,576 8,594,407 13,000,000 n/a 
			 2011 19,377,799 7,937,482 12,000,000 n/a 
			 January-November 2012 10,728,930 5,567,101 n/a n/a 
			 n/a = Not available 
		
	
	Figures for the export of services for 2008, 2009, and 2012 and the import of services for 2008-12 were not available as they were too small to capture.

Morocco

Mark Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make representations to the Moroccan ambassador that the 24 Saharawi prisoners imprisoned since the dismantling of the Gdeim Izik protest camp should be tried in a civilian court.

Alistair Burt: We regularly discuss human rights issues with the Moroccan authorities and have urged them to ensure a fair trial in the Gdim Izik case. I raised our concerns regarding this case with the Moroccan Justice Minister in June 2012.

North Korea

Chris Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has received on the persecution of Christians in North Korea.

Hugo Swire: The UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in North Korea highlighted the issue of religious persecution in his most recent report to the United Nations. The British embassy in Pyongyang brought this report to the attention of the North Korean Government.
	Members of the public and Members of Parliament have also raised the persecution of Christians with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. For example, in the past year, we have received a number letters and answered two parliamentary questions on this issue. This issue was also raised in a debate in the other place on 21 January 2013 and in a Westminster Hall debate on 11 January 2012. During both debates. I and the Senior Minister of State my right hon. Friend Baroness Warsi confirmed that the UK is extremely concerned about reports of religious persecution in North Korea.

Syria

George Galloway: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will condemn Israeli air attacks on targets in Syria.

Alistair Burt: We are aware of reports of an alleged Israeli air strike on Syria on 29 January but are not able to speculate further on this.
	The Government has reiterated its concern over many months about the impact of the Syrian conflict on the region, including the hundreds of thousands of Syrian refugees who have fled to neighbouring countries. We have also long standing concerns about reports of weapons transfers from Syria and Iran to Hezbollah in Lebanon. Any such transfers would be in violation of UN Security Council resolution 1701 and pose a threat to Lebanese and regional stability.

Western Sahara

Mark Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will instruct HM Ambassador to Morocco to send an observer to the trial of the 24 Saharawi political prisoners in Salé prison, imprisoned after the dismantling of the Gdaim Izik protest camp.

Alistair Burt: There are currently no plans to instruct the British ambassador to Morocco to send an observer to the trial. However, the British embassy in Rabat is following this case closely and will continue to emphasise to the Moroccan authorities the importance of full respect for human rights in dealing with this case. I raised our concerns with the Moroccan Justice Minister in June 2012.

Zimbabwe

Robert Halfon: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with (a) the Zimbabwean Government and (b) the World Bank about Zimbabwe's outstanding International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes award to Funnekotter and others in 2009.

Mark Simmonds: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office is aware of the Funnekotter and others case and continues to call upon the Government of Zimbabwe to uphold international court rulings. We note in this context the recent statements from Herbert Murerwa, Zimbabwean Minister for Land and Rural Resettlement confirming that, consistent with the ruling of the International Court for the Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID), the seizure of foreign-owned farms protected under bilateral Investment Promotion and Protection Agreements (IPPA) will stop with immediate effect. While there is no UK-Zimbabwe IPPA, these recent ministerial statements represent a positive development.
	The Department for International Development (DFID) has raised the ICSID ruling as part of ongoing discussions of the World Bank's support to Zimbabwe, where we have encouraged emphasis on the importance of safeguarding investment and observing the rule of law. The World Bank is considering how to respond. DFID officials have also discussed the ICSID ruling with other donors as part of talks on the development of a single programme for land reform. This programme encompasses many areas, including compensation.

JUSTICE

Insolvency

Stuart Andrew: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  whether his Department has had discussions with mortgage lenders on the provisions relating to receivership in the Law of Property Act 1925;
	(2)  whether his Department plans to review the provisions relating to receivership in the Law of Property Act 1925.

Helen Grant: Officials at the Ministry of Justice have had discussions with members of staff at the Council of Mortgage Lenders ("CML") and employees of some mortgage lenders about Law of Property Act receivers ("LPA Receivers") during the current Parliament. The discussions related to the Secured Lending Reform Bill introduced by my hon. Friend the Member for Camborne and Redruth (George Eustice), in 2010 and the guidance issued by the CML for its members on the role of LPA Receivers in 2011. The Department has no current plans to change the law relating to LPA Receivers but will continue to keep the situation under review.

Unpaid Fines

Jeremy Lefroy: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the total (a) value and (b) proportion of unpaid criminal fines is which are (i) in an agreed payment plan with a balance outstanding and (ii) outstanding and in default.

Helen Grant: As at 30 September 2012 (latest published data) the total value of outstanding fines was £589 million.
	Of the £589 million, £218.8 million (37% by value) is compliant with their agreed payment plans or are not yet due for payment, the remaining £370.2 million (63% by value) is outstanding and in default. HMCTS systems cannot differentiate between those cases that are paying in accordance with an agreed payment plan and those that are not yet due for payment.

Young Offenders

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  what sentences were handed down to those found guilty of an offence under the age of 14 between 1997 and 2011;
	(2)  how many people aged (a) 10, (b) 11, (c) 12 and (d) 13 were found guilty of an offence between 1997 and 2011.

Jeremy Wright: Defendants found guilty and sentenced at all courts with sentence breakdown for those aged 10 to 14 for all offences, in England and Wales, from 1997 to 2011, can be viewed in the following table:
	
		
			 Defendants found guilty and sentence breakdown at all courts, by age for all offences, England and Wales, 1997 to 2011(1,2,3) 
			 Age and outcome 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 
			 Age 10                
			 Guilty 93 121 160 195 199 178 168 209 152 128 146 84 61 42 34 
			 Sentenced 93 121 160 195 199 178 168 209 152 128 146 84 61 42 34 
			 Absolute discharge 2 1 3 1 3 6 9 18 14 9 13 5 5 6 — 
			 Conditional discharge 55 69 90 84 48 17 5 5 9 4 1 1 3 2 — 
			 Fine 10 19 21 15 19 8 19 37 2 7 10 6 3 4 1 
			 Community sentence 25 27 38 84 116 143 131 136 122 106 122 69 49 30 33 
		
	
	
		
			 Immediate custody 1 — — 2 — — — 1 1 — — 1 — — — 
			 Otherwise dealt with — 5 8 9 13 4 4 12 4 2 — 2 1 — — 
			                 
			 Age 11                
			 Guilty 330 488 748 759 727 724 714 670 703 591 630 580 381 261 209 
			 Sentenced 330 489 748 759 727 724 714 670 704 592 630 580 381 261 209 
			 Absolute discharge 3 7 8 12 10 38 48 37 46 38 38 47 18 23 10 
			 Conditional discharge 197 293 426 309 169 72 56 43 42 30 18 23 16 12 11 
			 Fine 16 24 33 41 32 18 14 13 11 9 12 7 3 3 3 
			 Community sentence 102 156 242 360 453 562 562 529 590 503 551 491 335 212 179 
			 Immediate custody 1 1 3 2 — 1 — 3 2 — — 2 1 1 — 
			 Otherwise dealt with 11 8 36 35 63 33 34 45 13 12 11 10 8 10 6 
			                 
			 Age 12                
			 Guilty 1,103 1,560 1,876 1,921 2,160 1,984 1,904 1,995 2,040 1,999 2,081 1,763 1,465 1,132 825 
			 Sentenced 1,103 1,560 1,876 1,922 2,160 1,984 1,904 1,995 2,040 1,999 2,082 1,765 1,466 1,132 826 
			 Absolute discharge 11 15 12 17 36 72 125 93 108 103 98 85 75 64 37 
			 Conditional discharge 593 905 956 705 486 177 139 139 129 137 117 109 87 60 50 
			 Fine 42 72 88 93 122 46 26 37 42 38 34 23 16 10 5 
			 Community sentence 427 524 703 968 1,280 1,578 1,502 1,565 1,688 1,653 1,786 1,488 1,245 933 692 
			 Immediate custody 10 10 17 45 67 36 28 33 26 18 17 18 16 11 8 
			 Otherwise dealt with 20 34 100 94 169 75 84 128 47 50 30 42 27 54 34 
			                 
			 Age 13                
			 Guilty 3,005 3,653 4,245 4,501 4,826 4,738 4,612 5,066 5,277 4,985 5,260 4,660 3,830 3,326 2,529 
			 Sentenced 3,005 3,655 4,249 4,501 4,825 4,739 4,612 5,067 5,283 4,987 5,253 4,659 3,828 3,327 2,529 
			 Absolute discharge 27 31 40 44 51 143 219 275 220 187 168 184 131 138 100 
			 Conditional discharge 1,516 1,770 1,973 1,561 1,082 463 359 407 389 316 368 292 248 220 174 
			 Fine 160 208 257 304 265 155 108 135 131 126 110 66 67 52 27 
			 Community sentence 1,221 1,514 1,665 2,226 2,923 3,617 3,588 3,821 4,296 4,139 4,410 3,924 3,239 2,708 2,094 
			 Immediate custody 24 35 73 143 169 186 146 124 117 107 90 93 67 44 38 
			 Otherwise dealt with 57 97 241 223 335 175 192 305 130 112 107 100 76 165 96 
			                 
			 Age 14                
			 Guilty 7,096 8,065 9,142 9,539 9,900 9,935 9,564 10,328 10,957 10,867 11,256 10,295 8,873 7,631 6,341 
			 Sentenced 7,098 8,071 9,146 9,543 9,900 9,935 9,564 10,330 10,966 10,874 11,257 10,298 8,873 7,628 6,338 
			 Absolute discharge 62 70 71 83 105 352 420 369 383 349 373 329 265 261 200 
			 Conditional discharge 3,210 3,511 3,783 2,945 1,997 1,068 862 917 913 863 878 752 646 635 553 
			 Fine 471 583 683 800 833 467 361 395 432 367 336 262 224 164 121 
			 Community sentence 3,116 3,581 3,894 4,808 5,793 7,155 7,051 7,664 8,600 8,577 9,013 8,395 7,228 5,879 4,942 
			 Immediate custody 94 145 223 458 544 508 448 439 381 447 406 321 267 213 206 
		
	
	
		
			 Otherwise dealt with 145 181 492 449 628 385 422 546 257 271 251 239 243 476 316 
			 (1) The figures given in the table on court proceedings relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences it is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe. (2) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. (3) The number of offenders sentenced can differ from those found guilty as it may be the case that a defendant found guilty in a particular year, and committed for sentence at the Crown court, may be sentenced in the following year. Source: Justice Statistics Analytical Services—Ministry of Justice

CULTURE MEDIA AND SPORT

British Film Institute

Stella Creasy: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport with reference to the recommendation of the Common Best Practice Code published by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills jointly with the Arts Council that interns should be paid at least the minimum wage, what assessment she has made of the recent advertisement by her Department's arm's length body the British Film Institute for 18 unpaid interns.

Edward Vaizey: holding answer 11 February 2013
	As a registered charity and under current guidelines, the BFI is able to offer internship/work experience opportunities on a voluntary basis. These placements offer managed work experience across a wide range of departments, including archive, library, charitable fundraising and audience development.
	In light of the recommendations of the Common Best Practice Code published by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills jointly with the Arts Council, the BFI is currently considering the future of the scheme.

Broadband: Rural Areas

Jamie Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport pursuant to the answer of 22 January 2013, Official Report, column 234W, on broadband: rural areas, what steps her Department is taking to improve broadband access for people in rural dwellings.

Edward Vaizey: holding answer 11 February 2013
	£530 million of the Government's total of £680 million has been made available to projects covering rural areas. The programme continues to move at pace. A total of 11 local projects have now signed contracts, and are either in delivery or about to commence. The remainder should have completed their procurements by this summer. Complementary to the wider rural broadband programme, the Rural Community Broadband Fund, jointly funded by DEFRA and Broadband Delivery UK (BDUK), is aimed at improving access to broadband for the hardest to reach rural areas and communities.

Film

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many UK feature films were produced in (a) 2008, (b) 2009, (c) 2010, (d) 2011 and (e) the latest period for which figures are available.

Edward Vaizey: The UK is feeling the reverberations of a slow-down in film production globally and film budgets have tightened in response to international market forces. However, we have seen significant private sector investment in facilities such as Warner Bros £100 million commitment to Leavesden, and Elstree Studios and Pinewood Studios are both seeking to expand capacity. Last October, Disney announced that it is to create a permanent base at Pinewood Studios. All of this underlines the long-term confidence in the UK film production sector.
	
		
			 Number of features produced in the UK, 2008-12 
			  2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 
			 Co-productions 29 37 31 47 38 
			 Domestic UK features 227 251 293 238 159 
			 Of which:      
			 Budgets >=£500,000 83 88 79 82 65 
			 Of which:      
			 Budgets <£500,000 144 163 214 156 94 
			       
			 Inward investment feature films 31 37 29 34 26 
			 Total 287 325 353 319 223 
			 Notes: 1. Data are rounded to the nearest £0.1 million so may not sum exactly to the totals shown. 2. Films are allocated to the calendar year in which principal photography commenced. 3. Films at all budget levels are included in this analysis. For pre-2008 data restricted to films with budgets >=£500,000 see the BFI 2012 Statistical Yearbook: www.bfi.org.uk/statisticalyearbook2012 Source: BFI

Local Press

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what steps the Government is taking to promote local journalism and to protect local newspapers.

Edward Vaizey: The Government are aware of the cyclical and structural economic challenges facing the traditional print press, and that these challenges are intensified for our local and regional newspapers.
	Government are working with industry to ensure that the voice of local newspapers is heard in the discussions currently taking place around implementation of Leveson’s recommendations.
	Government took action last year to relax cross-media ownership rules, which now make it easier for local media owners to purchase media businesses across formats. Zero-rated VAT also continues to apply to newspapers.

Local Press: West Midlands

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what recent assessment she has made of the strength of local journalism in the West Midlands.

Edward Vaizey: No assessment has been made of the strength of local journalism in the West Midlands.

Trinity Mirror

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport whether she has had any discussions with representatives from Trinity Mirror plc regarding its latest job loss proposals.

Edward Vaizey: No discussions have been held with representatives of Trinity Mirror plc regarding proposed changes to its publishing operations.

Trinity Mirror

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what representations she has received on the recent proposals for job losses at Trinity Mirror plc and the potential effect of those proposals on local journalism.

Edward Vaizey: No representations have been received about Trinity Mirror's proposed changes to its publishing operations.

HEALTH

Advisory Committee on Resource Allocation

Therese Coffey: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 4 February 2013, Official Report, columns 82-3W, on the Advisory Committee on Resource Allocation (ACRA), 
	(1)  what the names are of the current members of the ACRA;
	(2)  if he will publish the agenda, minutes and reports submitted for each of the meetings of the ACRA since May 2010;
	(3)  from which other Government Departments and devolved Administrations the civil servants on ACRA came; from which primary care trusts the GPs and NHS managers came; and from which organisations the public health consultants came.

Daniel Poulter: The current members of the Advisory Committee on Research Allocation (ACRA) and its Technical Advisory Group (TAG) are shown as follows.
	
		
			  Name ACRA TAG  
			 1 Mr David Fillingham (Chair ACRA) Yes — Chief Executive, Advancing Quality Alliance (AQuA) 
			 2 Mr Rob Webster (Chair TAG) Yes Yes Chief Executive, Leeds Community Healthcare NHS Trust 
			 3 Mr Sam Alderson — Yes Civil Servant, Department of Health 
			 4 Dr Chris Bentley Yes — PH Consultant, HINST Associates 
			 5 Professor Gwyn Bevan Yes Yes Professor of Management Science, London School of Economics and Political Science 
			 6 Mr Paul Brickwood — Yes Director of Finance and Commissioning, Knowsley Primary Care Trust 
			 7 Mr Mark Chandler Yes — Civil Servant, Department of Health, Social Services & Public Safety (N Ireland) 
			 8 (1)— Yes Yes Civil Servant, Department of Health 
			 9 Mr Steve Clarke — Yes Director of Finance, East of England Strategic Health Authority 
			 10 Dr Mike D'Souza Yes — General Practitioner, Kingston Multi-fund GP consortium (Former) 
			 11 Mr Keith Derbyshire Yes Yes Civil Servant, Department of Health 
			 12 Dr Paul Edmondson-Jones MBE Yes — Director of Public Health and Well-Being, City of York Council 
			 13 Mr Jon Ford Yes Yes Head of Health Policy and Economic Research, British Medical Association 
			 14 (1)— — Yes Head of Health Analysis, Office for National Statistics 
			 15 (1)— — Yes Senior Public Health Analyst, Department of Health 
			 16 Dr Peter Holden Yes — General Practitioner, British Medical Association (GP Committee) 
			 17 Mr Ben Humberstone Yes — Head of Population and Demography Division, Office for National Statistics 
			 18 Professor Sir Brian Jarman Yes — Emeritus Professor of Primary Care, Imperial College of Medicine 
			 19 Professor Martin Knapp Yes — Professor of Social Policy, London School of Economics and Political Science 
			 20 Mr Andy Leary (1)— Yes Director of Finance, Leicester and Lincoln Local Area Team 
			 21 Dr Stephen Lorrimer Yes Yes Civil Servant, Department of Health 
			 22 (1)— — Yes Civil Servant/Economic Advisor, Scottish Government 
			 23 Ms Rhona MacDonald Yes — Chief Executive (former), Bath and North Somerset Primary Care Trust 
			 24 (1)— — Yes Civil Servant, Department of Health, Social Services & Public Safety (N Ireland) 
			 25 Mrs Candy Morris Yes — Chief Executive, South East Coast Strategic Health Authority 
		
	
	
		
			 26 Professor Phil Rees Yes — Emeritus Professor, University of Leeds 
			 27 Mr David Reynolds — Yes Director of Finance, Freeman Hospital 
			 28 Professor Nigel Rice — Yes Prof of Health Economics, The University of York, Centre for Health Economics 
			 29 Mr Dave Roberts Yes — Head of Primary Care Strategy, Health & Social Care Information Centre 
			 30 Professor Colin Sanderson Yes Yes Senior Lecturer, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine 
			 31 (1)— Yes Yes Civil Servant, Department of Health 
			 32 (1)— Yes Yes Head of Population Dynamics, Office for National Statistics 
			 33 Dr Ian Trimble Yes — General Practitioner, Elmswood Surgery, Nottingham 
			 34 Professor Margaret Whitehead — Yes W.H. Duncan Chair of Public Health, The University of Liverpool 
			 35 Professor Frank Windmeijer — Yes Head of Department of Economics and Professor of Econometrics, University of Bristol 
			 (1 )Names of the following senior civil servants or equivalent have been withheld. Dr Ruth Hussey from NHS North West, stepped down from ACRA in July 2012 and has now taken up the post of Chief Medical Officer for Wales. Mr Jeremy Taylor, Chief Executive of National Voices, a national coalition of health and social care charities in England, stepped down in April 2012. 
		
	
	The final recommendations of ACRA have been published on the Department's website at:
	www.dh.gov.uk/health/2013/01/ph-grants-las/
	Alongside this, we have published the nine most relevant research reports considered by ACRA, including responses to the public health engagement exercise. To retrieve, examine and redact the remaining papers would incur disproportionate cost.

Beef: Horse Meat

Mary Creagh: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when the Food Standards Agency (FSA) was alerted to suspect meat in a Freeza Meat Ltd storage warehouse; who alerted the FSA to the presence of the meat; what advice the FSA issued to the alerting authority; and what steps the FSA took with regard to the suspect meat.

Anna Soubry: On 4 February 2013, the Food Standards Agency (FSA) received results from samples taken by Newry and Mourne district council from the detained consignment. Of the 12 samples taken from the consignment, two tested positive for equine DNA at levels between 60% and 100%.
	The consignment of meat believed to be destined for Silvercrest has been detained by Environmental Health officials in the cold store of Freeza Meats Ltd since October 2012. It was detained because of queries over the provenance of the product. The FSA has been working closely with the local authority throughout that investigation.
	Following the publication of the Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) authenticity survey results, the FSA ascertained that the product stored in Freeza Meats was imported from the same Polish source involved in the FSAI's survey. As this meat was detained, none of this meat has been used as an ingredient in food that has entered the food chain.

Beef: Horse Meat

Mary Creagh: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 22 January 2013, Official Report, column 261W, on beef: horsemeat, if he intends that the 796 samples tested for meat identification in 2012 will be tested for the presence of horsemeat.

Anna Soubry: The samples taken by local authorities during 2012 would have been collected for a variety of reasons and subject to different handling procedures. After having been tested for meat identification they would have been dealt with in accordance with the analytical laboratory's standard procedures and in agreement with the local authority concerned. In the majority of cases the samples will have been destroyed, or it would not be appropriate to subject them to further analysis.
	The Food Standards Agency has initiated a United Kingdom-wide targeted survey of the presence of undeclared horsemeat in processed meat available at retail, wholesale and catering businesses, and which follows set sampling and analytical protocols.

Carers: Travel

Ian Swales: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much time, on average, carers spend travelling between house calls.

Norman Lamb: The information requested is not collected centrally.
	On 18 September 2012, the Government launched the Developing Care Markets for Quality and Choice programme. This programme reinforces the commitment to driving up quality by enabling people to choose the services they receive. This follows a commitment in the White Paper to offer support to all local authorities to develop their market shaping capacity, and produce a high quality Market Position Statement. The tailored support provided through this programme, will encourage local authorities to commission more strategically.
	We are ruling out crude 'contracting by the minute' that turns care workers into clock watchers and will work with commissioners, care providers, people who use the services, carers and the Think Local Act Personal partnership to bring an end to commissioning practices that undermine people's dignity and choice.

Christchurch Hospital

Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will place in the Library a copy of the independent expert opinion obtained by the Royal Bournemouth and Christchurch Hospitals Foundation Trust on the cost benefit analysis of options for the future of the H block at Christchurch Hospital, including the option of demolition.

Anna Soubry: This is a matter for the Royal Bournemouth and Christchurch Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.
	We have written to the Trust's chair, Jane Stichbury, informing her of your inquiries. She will reply shortly and a copy of the letter will be placed in the Library.

Conversion Therapy

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  if he will make it his policy to prohibit the commissioning of conversion therapy by (a) clinical commissioning groups, (b) GP commissioning and (c) the National Commissioning Board;
	(2)  what recent representations he has received on conversion therapy.

Norman Lamb: The Department does not recommend the use of conversion therapy and it is not a National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence recommended treatment. I do not believe it would be appropriate to commission conversion therapy using public funds. It is for commissioners of NHS services to ensure that treatment and care, including therapy, is provided to every patient without any form of discrimination. Clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) will in future commission the majority of health care services. As public sector organisations, they will be subject to the specific duties of the public sector Equality Duty under the Equality Act 2010. Therefore CCGs must, in the exercise of their functions, have due regard to the need to eliminate unlawful discrimination, harassment and victimisation and other conduct prohibited under the Act.
	We have had no other representations on this issue.

Dalepak

Mary Creagh: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 22 January 2013, Official Report, column 266W, on Dalepak, how much was spent on (a) food hygiene inspection by Hambleton District Council on 25 June 2012 and (b) the meat composition and labelling inspection by North Yorkshire Trading Standards on 6 March 2012.

Anna Soubry: The Food Standards Agency does not hold data on the cost of food establishment inspections carried out by local authorities and is therefore unable to provide the requested information.

Defibrillators

Steve Rotheram: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many defibrillators have been distributed by the National Defibrillator Programme to date; and how many schools have been provided with defibrillators under this programme.

Anna Soubry: Under the National Defibrillator Programme, 3,000 defibrillators were provided to national health service organisations that provide ambulance services, to place in the community. From February 2007, responsibility for sustaining the legacy of the National Defibrillator Programme was devolved to NHS ambulance trusts.

Depression

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the level of availability of mindfulness-based treatment for repeat episode depression in each health authority.

Norman Lamb: Information from the Improving Access to Psychological Therapies regional teams shows that Mindfulness Cognitive Behavioural Therapy is available to some extent in all 10 strategic health authority areas.

Diabetes

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether his Department has any plans to reward GPs for ensuring all the nine basic diabetes tests are delivered for patients with diabetes.

Daniel Poulter: The national Quality and Outcomes Framework (QOF) provides additional reward to general practitioner (GP) practices for how well they care for patients based on their performance against a number of agreed indicators.
	Since 2004, GPs have been paid incentives for providing the nine basic checks on people with diabetes. Performance and patient care have improved considerably as a result of this. However, more needs to be done to ensure that everyone with diabetes receives all of the nine basic checks.
	The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) is responsible for reviewing the evidence base for QOF indicators. The NHS Medical Director, Sir Bruce Keogh, has asked NICE to consider a composite indicator measuring the proportion of patients receiving all nine of the processes.

Food: Contamination

Mary Creagh: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many food sample tests have been conducted by (a) the Food Standards Agency and (b) local authorities acting on behalf of the Food Standards Agency in each of the last five years.

Anna Soubry: Information about the type and number of samples taken by Food Standards Agency (FSA) staff is set out in the annual reports of the Implementation of the UK National Control Plan since 2007. The FSA also publishes the reports of occasional surveys of foods, which help judge the effectiveness of food law regulation/to inform negotiations with the European Commission, monitor trends and assess risks. These reports can all be found on the FSA website.
	The FSA requires local authorities by means of the Food Law Code of Practice to have risk-based sampling programmes in place. The FSA also provides funding for local authorities to carry out sampling as part of an annual National Co-ordinated Sampling Programme. The FSA annual monitoring of local authority sampling in four of the last five years is set out in the following table. The complete data for local authority sampling and analysis carried out for 1 April 2012 to 31 March 2013 is not yet available.
	
		
			  Total analyses Total samples 
			 2008-09 133,054 98,561 
			 2009-10 121,964 105,556 
			 2010-11 110,108 92,122 
			 2011-12 92,181 78,653

Heart Diseases

Meg Munn: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  if he will direct the National Specialised Commissioning Team to release all reports prepared for the Advisory Group for National Specialised Services and the National Specialised Commissioning Group which relate to (a) paediatric cardiac surgery, (b) cardiac transplants and (c) extra-corporeal membrane oxygenation;
	(2)  if he will direct the National Specialised Commissioning Team to publish the report by Professor Michael Arthur, Chairman of the Advisory Group for National Specialised Services, to the Joint Committee of Primary Care Trusts meeting on 23 April 2012.

Anna Soubry: The papers prepared by the Advisory Group for National Specialised Services (AGNSS) and the National Specialised Commissioning Group relating to (a) paediatric cardiac surgery, (b) cardiac transplants and (c) extra-corporeal membrane oxygenation, together with the paper from AGNSS to the Joint Committee of Primary Care Trusts of 23 April, have all been released following Freedom of Information requests.

Home Care Services

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  how many people are dependent on home care providers;
	(2)  if he will take steps to ensure that private companies that provide home care have in place contingency plans for when they may be unable to provide essential care;

Norman Lamb: We are informed by the NHS Information Centre for Health and Social Care that, in 2011-12—the latest available figures—the number of service users in England receiving home care provided or arranged by local councils was 517,000. This is a provisional figure; final, validated data will be published on 15 February 2013.
	Information on the numbers of people in England who arrange and fund their own home care Is not collected centrally.
	If a local authority arranges or provides care, it is responsible for ensuring that the care meets the needs of service users, whether it provides care directly or via contracting with an independent sector provider. If such a provider is unable to deliver the service, the local authority would be responsible for ensuring suitable alternative provision.
	A local authority has a duty under section 47(1) of the NHS and Community Care Act 1990 to assess a person's needs when it appears to the authority, that the person may be in need of community care services. Local authorities may, depending on the result of an assessment, have a duty to provide or arrange care to meet a person's assessed needs.
	A local authority will not normally provide or arrange care for self funders—people who are able to afford to pay for their own care. However, it may arrange, but not necessarily pay for, care for self funders who lack capacity or the ability to do so and have nobody to act on their behalf.
	The Government are currently consulting on a new system of market oversight in adult social care, which would offer greater protections for individuals who rely upon care and support services, including home care. The plans include measures to:
	strengthen and clarify the responsibility of local authorities in the event of failure;
	oversee financial performance of providers;
	challenge business models to make sure they can support the delivery of quality care services;
	ensure businesses develop plans to recover from financial distress;
	provide the regulator with information to develop contingency plans with local authorities for continuing care in the event of a failure; and
	coordinate and communicate with local authorities and relevant parties in the event of failure to ensure people's care and support needs continue to be met.
	The consultation closes on 1 March. The consultation document, “Market Oversight in Adult Social care”, has been placed in the Library and is available at:
	http://caringforourfuture.dh.gov.uk/2012/12/03/provider-failure/

Horses: Phenylbutazone

Huw Irranca-Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many tests for the presence of phenylbutazone in horses have been carried out by (a) the Food Standards Agency and (b) any other Government-funded agency in each of the last six months.

Anna Soubry: The information requested is shown in the following table.
	
		
			   Samples collected and tested by the FSA for presence of phenylbutazone Samples collected and tested by other Government funded agencies for presence of phenylbutazone 
			 2012 July 12 6 
			 2012 August 37 4 
			 2012 September 16 6 
			 2012 October — 7 
			 2012 November — 7 
			 2012 December — 1 
			     
			 2013 January 73 6 
			 Notes: 1. Some samples collected in January are currently still being tested. 2. The samples collected and tested by other Government funded agencies have been collected on behalf of the Veterinary Residues Committee as part of the Veterinary Residues Statutory Survey.

Horses: Phenylbutazone

Huw Irranca-Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many horses in UK abattoirs have tested positive for phenylbutazone in each of the last three years.

Anna Soubry: The information requested is shown in the following table.
	
		
			  Total number of samples collected for testing of phenylbutazone at UK Abattoirs Number of compliant (negative) results Number of non-compliant (positive) results 
			 2010 60 55 5 
			 2011 79 78 1 
			 2012 158 149 9 
			 Note: The samples collected in 2010 and 2011 where collected as part of the Veterinary Residues Statutory Survey and the samples collected in 2012 where collected as part of both the Veterinary Residues Statutory Survey and the Food Standards Agency Survey.

Hospitals: Infectious Diseases

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many cases of hospital-acquired infections have been recorded in each of the last 10 years.

Daniel Poulter: The Government has made it a key priority that the national health service should take a zero tolerance approach to all health are associated infections, with every hospital performing at the level of the very best. In fact, Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) bacteraemia and Clostridium difficile (C. difficile) infections are at their lowest levels since mandatory reporting for each was introduced.
	Although the Health Protection Agency does not routinely collect comprehensive data on all hospital-acquired infections, it does collect data on the following infections: MRSA bacteraemia, C. difficile infection and Methicillin sensitive Staphylococcus aureus (MSSA) bacteraemia by acute NHS trust. The data on these infections are contained in the following table, for the years for which figures are available.
	
		
			 Trust apportioned reports by organism and financial year 
			 Organism April 2007 to March 2008 April 2008 to March 2009 April 2009 to March 2010 April 2010 to March 2011 April 2011 to March 2012 
			 Clostridium difficile infection(1) 33,442 19,927 13,220 10,417 7,670 
			 MRSA bacteraemia (2)— 1,606 1,004 688 473 
			 MSSA bacteraemia (2)— (2)— (2)— (2)— 2,835 
			 (1) C. difficile infection data is for individuals aged two years and over. (2) Not collected. 
		
	
	Data are correct as of 18 April 2012. Trust apportioned C. difficile data is available from financial year 2007-08 to 2011-12; MRSA bacteraemia from 2008-09 to 2011-12, and MSSA bacteraemia for 2011-12 only (as surveillance started in 2011). Prior to these time periods the appropriate information was not collected to allow the data to be categorised in this way.

Hospitals: Infectious Diseases

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to promote greater cleanliness in hospitals and prevent the spread of hospital acquired infections.

Daniel Poulter: The NHS Constitution commits the national health service to ensure that services are provided in a:
	'clean and safe environment that is fit for purpose, based on national best practice'.
	Providers of NHS funded care must also secure and maintain registration with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) against a range of essential standards of safety and quality. These include requirements in relation to cleanliness and infection control. The Department has published guidance (the ‘Code of Practice for health and adult social care on the prevention and control of infections and related guidance’) to support providers in demonstrating how they comply with this standard.
	A clean safe environment is essential for effective infection prevention and control and instils confidence in patients who often use cleanliness as a proxy for other quality indicators. The Government has made it a key priority that the NHS should take a zero tolerance approach to all health care associated infections, with every hospital performing at the level of the very best. In fact, Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus bloodstream infections and Clostridium difficile infections are at their lowest levels since mandatory reporting for each was introduced.
	By all recent measures, hospital cleanliness has also improved across the NHS and these improvements have been noticed by patients. The CQC's in-patient survey is a key indicator—the most recent results (May 2012) showed the highest ever levels of satisfaction with the cleanliness of hospital wards, toilets and bathrooms.
	A new system of patient led assessments of the care environment (PLACE) is to be introduced in April 2013 to support local improvement activity across a range of non-clinical services including cleanliness in hospitals providing NHS funded care. The process will require providers formally to respond to the findings of the assessment teams.

Human Papillomavirus

Crispin Blunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to monitor the possibility that those pre-exposed to vaccine relevant types of human papillomavirus may be at greater risk of developing cervical cancer if vaccinated.

Anna Soubry: Human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccines are inactivated vaccines. They do not contain live organisms and cannot cause the disease against which they protect.
	The incidence of cervical cancer is monitored over time through the Office for National Statistics. The HPV immunisation programme is eventually expected to significantly lower cases of cervical cancer.

Human Papillomavirus

Crispin Blunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department is taking to monitor the emergence of new and more virulent human papilloma virus types replacing those suppressed by Gardasil and Cervarix.

Anna Soubry: The Department provides funding to the Health Protection Agency (HPA) to support evaluation of the impact of the human papillomavirus (HPV) immunisation programme on HPV infection and disease. The HPA is conducting surveillance of HPV infection, using opportunistic sources of anonymised residual clinical specimens, to monitor the frequency of type-specific genital HPV infections in England. As well as monitoring the impact of immunisation on the vaccine-types, this surveillance will, in due course, report on the frequency of infection with HPV types that are not in current vaccines in order to inform assessment of cross-protection against these types and any emergence of these types.

Human Papillomavirus

Crispin Blunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what steps his Department is taking to ensure new medical conditions occurring after human papilloma virus vaccination are examined as possible vaccine reactions;
	(2)  what his assessment is on whether patient information accurately portrays potential adverse outcomes from human papilloma virus vaccines.

Norman Lamb: The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) is responsible for monitoring the safety of all medicines including vaccines used in the United Kingdom and has robust systems in place to achieve this. Healthcare professionals, patients and carers are asked to submit reports of suspected adverse reactions to medicines and vaccines via the Yellow Card scheme. The MHRA uses data from the Yellow Card scheme alongside evaluation of data from clinical studies, medical literature and use of statistical and epidemiological tools to assess possible risks. The MHRA works very closely with regulatory authorities from other countries and seeks independent expert advice from the UK's Commission on Human Medicines (CHM) when evaluating potential new risks or medical conditions suspected to be side effects of vaccines and medicines. When there is sufficient evidence that a vaccine or medicines may be associated with a new risk, regulatory action is taken to ensure that the balance of benefits and risks remains positive.
	As with all vaccines and medicines, the product information for Ceryarix and Gardasil human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccines, including the Summary of Product Characteristics (SPC) for healthcare professionals and patient information leaflet (PIL) for patients, is kept under continual review to ensure it reflects current robust evidence on the possible side effects of the vaccines. Possible side effects are listed in the product information where there is sufficient evidence that there is at least a possible causal association with the vaccine. The current product information for both HPV vaccines accurately reflects what is known about the safety of the HPV vaccines at this time.

ICT

Stephen McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the (a) start date, (b) planned completion date, (c) expected completion date, (d) planned cost and (e) expected cost was of each information technology project with a value in excess of £1 million undertaken by his Department and its executive agencies since 2010; and if he will make a statement.

Daniel Poulter: Information technology (IT) projects are those projects initiated by the IT functions of the Department and its agencies to deploy improved, upgraded and replacement IT infrastructure and services to their organisations. Business change or service improvement projects which may contain an IT element, even where the IT component is in excess of £1 million have been excluded as these are not classed as IT projects.
	The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency have commissioned two projects with a value exceeding £1 million.
	
		
			 Year of approval Project Planned costs (£) Expected costs Start date Planned completion date Expected completion date 
			 2012 Modernise IT 1,510,000 On budget August 2012 May 2013 May 2013 
			 2010 RBI 2,265,000 On budget August 2010 February 2013 February 2013 
		
	
	The Department has commissioned one project with a value exceeding £1 million. Connecting for Health have commissioned no IT projects in excess of £1 million.
	
		
			 Year of approval Project Planned costs (£) Expected costs Start date Planned completion date Expected completion date 
			 2011 IMS3/Open Service 10,000,000 On budget January 2012 March 2013 June 2013

Meat: Contamination

Huw Irranca-Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when the Food Standards Agency will announce the test results on meat withdrawn from sale.

Anna Soubry: Immediately after the results of the Food Safety Authority of Ireland's survey were issued, the Food Standards Agency (FSA) launched an investigation into how a number of beef products on sale in the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland came to contain some traces of horse and pig DNA. The results of these investigations are being published on the agency's website at:
	www.food.gov.uk
	At a meeting on 4 February, the FSA agreed with the food industry to publish the results of industry testing of meat products, to provide a clearer picture of standards in the food chain. The results will also be made publicly available. The outcome of this meeting was published on our website at:
	www.food.gov.uk/news-updates/news/2013/feb/fsa-statement
	The FSA will also publish the results from the UK-wide study of food authenticity on equine and porcine DNA in processed meat products available at retail, catering and wholesale businesses, including wholesale businesses supplying schools and hospitals. The study is already under way and results will be published in April 2013.
	In addition, on 7 February, the FSA announced it is demanding a more comprehensive meat testing programme from food businesses. The tests will be for the presence of significant levels of horse meat in all beef products, such as beef burgers, meatballs and lasagne. The deadline for these results to be provided to the FSA is 15 February.

Meat: Contamination

Mary Creagh: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what samples from (a) schools, (b) hospitals and (c) prisons will be taken by the Food Standards Agency during its inquiry into undeclared equine and porcine DNA in meat products.

Anna Soubry: As part of the published four-point action plan, the Food Standards Agency is working closely with the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, the devolved rural affairs departments and local authorities on a United Kingdom-wide study of food authenticity on horse and pig DNA in comminuted beef products.
	The sampling protocol for the survey specifies that local authorities should take samples from wholesale and catering food businesses, particularly those supplying schools and hospitals. This is also likely to cover wholesalers supplying food to other institutional organisations such as prisons.

Medical Equipment

Tessa Munt: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  pursuant to the answer of 22 January 2013, Official Report, column 213W, how much of the £300 million fund has been spent to date; what medical equipment such funding has been provided; and which hospitals acquired the equipment;
	(2)  pursuant to the answer of 31 January 2013, Official Report, column 913W, on radiotherapy, whether all the funding used by NHS trusts to purchase 12 radiotherapy machines came from the £28.35 million;
	(3)  pursuant to the answer of 31 January 2013, Official Report, column 913W, on radiotherapy, whether large single medical equipment purchases for which funds have been raised entirely from charitable donations are exempt from the NHS Supply Chain charge of between one and three per cent;
	(4)  pursuant to the answer of 31 January 2013, Official Report, column 913W, on radiotherapy, whether NHS Supply Chain purchased all 20 Linacs at a discounted price; and what plans NHS Supply Chain has to purchase more.

Daniel Poulter: The total expenditure from the £300 million fund by NHS Supply Chain (NHSSC) with suppliers to date (February 2013) is £114 million.
	The total expenditure by national health service trusts with NHSSC made through the fund to date (February 2013) is £65 million.
	Information on the modality of medical equipment the funding has provided is provided in List 1. Information on which hospital trusts have acquired the equipment is provided in List 2.
	List 1
	Modality
	Anaesthesia
	Angiography
	Bladder Scanner
	Bladder Scanners
	CT Scanners
	Flexible Endoscopy
	Linac
	Mammography
	MII
	Mobile X-Ray
	MRI
	Patient Monitoring
	Static X-Ray
	Ultrasound
	X-Ray
	List 2
	Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS FT
	Clatterbridge Centre for Oncology NHS FT
	Barts Health NHS trust
	North Cumbria University Hospitals NHS Trust
	Tameside Hospital NHS FT
	Walsall Healthcare NHS Trust
	Pennine Acute Hospitals NHS Trust
	University College London Hospitals NHS FT
	Hinchingbrooke Health Care NHS Trust
	East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust
	Yeovil District Hospital NHS FT
	The Royal Marsden NHS FT
	Central London Community Healthcare NHS Trust
	Croydon Health Services NHS Trust
	Colchester Hospital University NHS FT
	University Hospitals Birmingham NHS FT
	Heart of England NHS FT
	Barnsley Hospital NHS FT
	Hull and East Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust
	University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS FT
	Royal National Hospital for Rheumatic Diseases NHS FT
	Chelsea and Westminster Hospital NHS FT
	Doncaster and Bassetlaw Hospitals NHS FT
	Rotherham, Doncaster and South Humber NHS FT
	Gateshead Health NHS FT
	Oxford University Hospitals NHS Trust
	Abertawe Bro Morgannwg University LHB
	Luton And Dunstable Hospital NHS FT
	Great Western Hospitals NHS FT
	Taunton and Somerset NHS FT
	Barnet and Chase Farm Hospitals NHS Trust
	Medway NHS FT
	Calderdale and Huddersfield NHS FT
	Halton and St Helens PCT
	South Warwickshire NHS FT
	Bradford Teaching Hospitals NHS FT
	Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust
	Solent NHS Trust
	Aintree University Hospitals NHS FT
	Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust
	Plymouth Hospitals NHS Trust
	York Teaching Hospital NHS FT
	North West London Hospitals NHS Trust
	Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust
	Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospitals NHS Trust
	South Eastern Health and Social Care
	Alder Hey Children's NHS FT
	Wirral University Teaching Hospital NHS FT
	Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust
	Dartford and Gravesham NHS Trust
	Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS FT
	Cwm Taf LHB
	University Hospital of South Manchester NHS FT
	Guy's and St Thomas' NHS FT
	East Cheshire NHS Trust
	Central Manchester University Hospitals NHS FT
	Wrightington, Wigan and Leigh NHS FT
	Northern Heath and Social Care Trust
	Ashford and St Peter's Hospitals NHS FT
	St George's Healthcare NHS Trust
	Poole Hospital NHS FT
	Bolton NHS FT
	Barking, Havering and Redbridge University Hospitals NHS Trust
	University Hospital of North Staffordshire NHS Trust
	University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust
	Isle of Wight NHS PCT
	Southend University Hospital NHS FT
	Betsi Cadwaladr University LHB
	Warrington and Halton Hospitals NHS FT
	Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital NHS Trust
	East Kent Hospitals University NHS FT
	North Middlesex University Hospital NHS Trust
	University Hospitals Bristol NHS FT
	Birmingham Women's NHS FT
	Portsmouth Hospitals NHS Trust
	Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust
	Leeds PCT
	Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals NHS Trust
	NHS Wales Shared Services Partnership
	South Tees Hospitals NHS FT
	Frimley Park Hospital NHS FT
	South Devon Healthcare NHS FT
	Belfast Health and Social Care Trust
	Mid Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust
	Leicestershire County and Rutland PCT
	Northern Lincolnshire and Goole Hospitals NHS FT
	Royal Free Hampstead NHS Trust
	Papworth Hospital NHS FT
	Mid Staffordshire NHS FT
	Bristol and Weston Purchasing Consortium—North Bristol NHS Trust
	Sherwood Forest Hospitals NHS FT
	Royal Cornwall Hospitals NHS Trust
	Birmingham Children's Hospital NHS FT
	East and North Hertfordshire NHS Trust
	Newcastle PCT
	Northampton General Hospital NHS Trust
	Liverpool Heart and Chest NHS FT
	Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children NHS Trust
	Aneurin Bevan LHB
	King's College Hospital NHS FT
	Buckinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust
	Royal United Hospital Bath NHS Trust
	County Durham and Darlington NHS FT
	North Tees and Hartlepool NHS FT
	East Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust
	Derby Hospitals NHS FT
	Leicester City PCT
	Hampshire Hospitals NHS FT
	Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS FT
	The Newcastle Upon Tyne Hospitals NHS FT
	Kettering General Hospital NHS FT
	James Paget University Hospitals NHS FT
	Hywel Dda LHB
	Basildon and Thurrock University Hospitals NHS FT
	Torbay Care Trust
	Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust
	West Hertfordshire Hospitals NHS Trust
	Derbyshire Community Health Services NHS Trust
	Norfolk and Norwich University Hospitals NHS FT
	North Staffordshire Combined Healthcare NHS Trust
	Homerton University Hospital NHS FT
	Burton Hospitals NHS FT
	Epsom and St Helier University Hospitals NHS Trust
	Cambridge University Hospitals NHS FT
	The Hillingdon Hospitals NHS FT
	Royal Brompton and Harefield NHS FT
	Lewisham Healthcare NHS Trust
	Liverpool Women's NHS FT
	The Princess Alexandra Hospital NHS Trust
	Heatherwood and Wexham Park Hospitals NHS FT
	Peterborough And Stamford Hospitals NHS FT
	Chesterfield Royal Hospital NHS FT
	Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells Dorset County Hospital NHS FT
	Kingston Hospital NHS Trust
	Royal Surrey County Hospital NHS FT
	Southern Health and Social Care Trust
	Western Health and Social Care Trust
	RAF High Wycombe
	With regard to funding used by the NHS to purchase radiography machines, the NHSSC have purchased 20 Linac machines, to the value of £28.5 million, for onward sale to the NHS. Eight remain unsold to date. The 12 NHS trust purchasers have paid NHSSC £18,564,845 to purchase these machines for their own use and to individual trust specifications.
	Regarding whether funds raised entirely from charitable donations are exempt from NHSSC charges, NHSSC charge this fee directly to the supplier and not the trust.
	Finally, with regard to the purchasing of the 20 Linac machines, we can confirm that all 20 were bought at a discounted rate. NHSSC are in the process of discussing further deals with suppliers.

NHS: Finance

Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  how many patient attendance episodes at each acute hospital received (a) no payment reward and (b) lower than tariff payment award in each of the last five years for which records are available;
	(2)  if he will provide the (a) market forces factor figures and (b) actual tariff payments made to each (a) NHS trust, (b) foundation trust, (c) private provider of services and (d) other providers of services for each procedure for which a tariff is applicable.

Daniel Poulter: The Department does not hold centrally information on how many patient attendance episodes received no payment reward or lower than tariff payment award nor does the Department hold centrally information on the actual tariff payments made to providers for each procedure for which a tariff is applicable.
	A document showing the market forces factor (MFF) for NHS trusts, foundation trusts and primary care trusts has been placed in the Library. For non-NHS providers, the MFF used is that of the NHS trust or foundation trust nearest to the location where the care was delivered.

NHS: Finance

Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what payments will be made to NHS bodies which provide emergency services per (a) treatment provided and (b) emergency admission in 2013-14;
	(2)  what payment arrangements are made to acute trusts which provide (a) emergency department, (b) accident and emergency services and (c) minor injury facilities for each service (i) on a per patient basis and (ii) if there is a cap on payments to those emergency services;
	(3)  what the per patient payment-by-results payment was for each patient attendance at an emergency department in each of the last five years for which records are available.

Daniel Poulter: NHS bodies which provide emergency services will receive a tariff payment for the attendance at accident and emergency (A&E) and, where appropriate, a further payment for non-elective activity if the patient is then admitted. Payments for emergency services will depend on the level of activity, the national tariff which applies to that activity plus the market forces factor (MFF) payment which is unique to that organisation. There are also a number of rules within the Payment by Results (PbR) system which will influence payments to providers such as the marginal rate emergency tariff, non-payment for some emergency readmissions, the short stay emergency adjustment and long stay payments.
	The Department does not collect information on the payments made to providers for each patient attendance at an emergency department. While the Department publishes the national tariff, the rules and the MFF, it does not collect information on the actual payments to trusts.
	The tariffs which were set for A&E attendances between 2008-09 and 2012-13, and the proposed tariff for A&E attendances in 2013-14, are shown in the tables.
	Between 2011-12 and 2013-14, non-24 hour A&E units and minor injury units (MIUs) are eligible for the lowest tariff only.
	Tariffs for non-elective admissions and the rules around payment are published annually on the Department's website(1).
	(1) Tariff prices are set out in the tariff information spreadsheet:
	www.dh.gov.uk/health/2012/02/confirmation-pbr-arrangements/
	and the rules are explained in the PbR Guidance for 2012-13:
	www.dh.gov.uk/en/Publicationsandstatistics/Publications/PublicationsPolicyAndGuidance/DH_132654
	
		
			 National Tariff—Accident and Emergency Tariff (2011-12 to 2013-14) 
			 Healthcare resource group code Healthcare resource group name Band (used in 2012-13 and 2011-12) 2013-14(1) (£) 2012-13 (£) 2011-12 (£) 
			 VB01Z Any investigation with category 5 treatment 1 237 235 183 
			 VB02Z Category 3 investigation with category 4 treatment 1 210 235 183 
			 VB03Z Category 3 investigation with category 1-3 treatment 2 164 151 133 
			 VB04Z Category 2 investigation with category 4 treatment 2 139 151 133 
			 VB05Z Category 2 investigation with category 3 treatment 2 130 151 133 
			 VB06Z Category 1 investigation with category 3-4 treatment 3 102 81 78 
			 VB07Z Category 2 investigation with category 2 treatment 4 119 112 110 
			 VB08Z Category 2 investigation with category 1 treatment 4 110 112 110 
			 VB09Z Category 1 investigation with category 1-2 treatment 3 78 81 78 
			 VB10Z Dental Care 5 59 54 52 
			 VB11Z(2) No investigation with no significant treatment 5 58 54 52 
			 (1) Banding is not applied in 2013-14. (2) It is expected that ail activity taking place within non-24 hour departments and MIUs attract price forVB11Z. 
		
	
	
		
			 National Tariff—Accident and Emergency Tariff (2008-09 to 2010-11) 
			 Healthcare resource group code Healthcare resource group name A&E tariff name/ band 2010-11 (£) 2009-10 (£) 2008-09 (£) 
			 U06 Attendance disposal Invalid for grouping No Payment 0 0 0 
			 DOA Dead on Arrival Standard 87 80 75 
			 V01 High cost imaging (Died/ Admitted) High 117 109 102 
			 V02 High cost imaging (Referred / Discharged) High 117 109 102 
		
	
	
		
			 V03 Other high cost investigation (Died / Admitted) High 117 109 102 
			 V04 Other high cost investigation (Referred / Discharged) High 117 109 102 
			 V05 Low cost investigation (Died / Admitted) Standard 87 80 75 
			 V06 Low cost investigation (Referred / Discharged) Standard 87 80 75 
			 V07 No investigation (Died / Admitted) Minor 59 59 56 
			 V08 No investigation (Referred / Discharged) Minor 59 59 56 
			 V100MC Non-24 hour A&E Department / Casualty Department Minor 59 59 56 
			 V100MI(1) Discrete Minor Injuries Unit Minor 59 59 56 
			 (1) It is expected that all activity taking place within non-24 hour departments and MIUs attract price for V100MI.

Organs: Donors

Rehman Chishti: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many and what proportion of people who died whilst waiting for an organ donation in each of the last 10 years were (a) white, (b) Asian and Asian British, (c) black and black British, (d) Chinese and oriental, (e) mixed and (f) other.

Anna Soubry: The information requested is shown in the following table.
	
		
			 Number and proportion of United Kingdom patients who have died while waiting for an organ transplant (2003 to 2012 by ethnic origin) 
			   Year of death 
			 Ethnic origin  2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 Total 
			 White Number 473 511 522 523 571 540 616 578 533 434 5,301 
			  % 84.8 85.3 82.3 84.9 85.5 84.2 82.6 84.0 81.2 81.3 83.6 
			 Asian/Asian British Number 50 46 71 56 61 58 86 67 76 61 632 
			  % 9.0 7.7 11.2 9.1 9.1 9.0 11.5 9.7 11.6 11.4 10.0 
			 Black/Black British Number 27 29 33 23 26 32 32 30 32 26 290 
			  % 4.8 4.8 5.2 3.7 3.9 5.0 4.3 4.4 4.9 4.9 4.6 
			 Chinese/Oriental Number 2 3 4 6 1 2 8 5 6 5 42 
			  % 0.4 0.5 0.6 1.0 0.1 0.3 1.1 0.7 0.9 0.9 0.7 
			 Mixed Number 2 1 0 3 1 1 2 0 1 4 15 
			  % 0.4 0.2 0.0 0.5 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.0 0.2 0.7 0.2 
			 Other Number 4 9 4 5 8 8 2 8 8 4 60 
			  % 0.7 1.5 0.6 0.8 1.2 1.2 0.3 1.2 1.2 0.7 0.9 
			 Not recorded Number 4 7 6 3 3 2 4 2 2 1 34 
			 Total  562 606 640 619 671 643 750 690 658 535 6,374 
			 Note: Table includes cases where patient was removed from transplant list due to deterioration and then died. Percentages are of those patients in each year where ethnic origin is recorded. Source: NHS Blood and Transplant

Post-traumatic Stress Disorder

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department is taking to ensure that members of the emergency and armed services are given access to the most advanced treatments for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.

Norman Lamb: Ambulance services have robust processes in place for supporting staff with post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and other similar post-incident disorders. All services have Occupational Health departments which invariably provide the counselling services or, through sub-contracting arrangements, buy in the specialised resources needed as required. Ambulance services have 24 hour, seven-day access to these services.
	All fire and rescue authorities will have access to occupational health services who will arrange the appropriate treatment and support as necessary.
	The provisions for welfare of members of the police (and this would include officers and staff suffering from PTSD and related disorders) would be a matter for the individual police force.
	The majority of mental health treatment for members of the armed forces is provided by members of the Defence Medical Services (DMS), who have extensive experience in psychological treatments for mental health problems in general and psychological injury in particular. The DMS monitors the latest advances and developments in treatment in order to ensure .that service personnel receive the most effective and efficient interventions.
	In providing treatment for PTSD, DMS mental health professionals follow the guidelines and standards set by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE). NICE has assessed that Trauma Focussed Cognitive Behavioural Therapy and Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing are known to be effective in treating PTSD, and both of these are available as required in the network of military-run Departments of Community Mental Health in the United Kingdom and Germany.

Post-traumatic Stress Disorder

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department is taking to ensure the early diagnosis of post traumatic stress disorder in members of the emergency services.

Daniel Poulter: Individual national health service trusts are responsible for the health and wellbeing of their staff including ensuring those with post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) get an early diagnosis and the care they need.
	Ambulance services have robust processes in place for supporting staff with PTSD and other similar post-incident disorders. All services have occupational health departments which invariably provide the counselling services or, through sub-contracting arrangements, buy in the specialised resources needed as required. Ambulance services have 24 hour, seven-day access to these services.
	Following the Department's comprehensive review of NHS staff health and wellbeing, there is now extensive advice and guidance available to support trusts via the Health, Work and Wellbeing pages on NHS Employers' website at:
	www.nhsemployers.org/healthyworkplaces/pages/home-healthy.aspx

Post-traumatic Stress Disorder

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many individuals currently employed in the emergency services have received treatment for post traumatic stress disorder in the last five years.

Daniel Poulter: This information is not held centrally.

Sexually Transmitted Infections

Crispin Blunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the rate of infection has been of (a) Chlamydia and (b) all other sexually transmitted diseases in (i) girls and (ii) boys under 18 years old in each year since 2005.

Anna Soubry: The information available is shown in the following table:
	
		
			 Rates of selected sexually transmitted infections (STIs), per 100,000 population, diagnosed in England, 2005-11 
			 STI Age group Gender 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 
			 Chlamydia <15 Male 3.8 4.8 4.5 5.0 4.0 3.2 3.5 
			   Female 45.5 47.4 49.5 53.8 43.0 42.2 42.4 
			   Total 24.1 25.5 26.4 28.8 23.0 22.2 22.5 
			  15 to 19 Male 420.9 448.6 504.8 954.5 1,077.0 1,127.8 1,039.1 
			   Female 1,174.0 1,139.5 1,215.2 2,956.5 3,276.7 3,268.0 3,027.2 
			   Total 787.8 783.2 849.1 1,943.9 2,162.1 2,172.0 2,008.3 
			  All ages Male 183.0 196.8 213.3 280.7 293.7 298.6 297.9 
			   Female 202.2 198.6 211.5 401.2 430.9 422.6 412.1 
			   Total 192.8 197.7 212.4 343.9 365.5 362.4 356.5 
			           
			 Gonorrhoea <15 Male 1.8 1.4 0.9 0.6 0.6 0.5 0.3 
			   Female 9.2 6.4 8.8 7.1 7.2 6.5 7.2 
			   Total 5.4 3.8 4.8 3.8 3.8 3.4 3.7 
			  15 to 19 Male 87.8 84.9 90.0 74.9 74.7 68.1 76.4 
			   Female 124.9 116.7 127.7 123.8 121.2 118.0 120.8 
			   Total 105.9 100.3 108.3 98.7 97.6 92.4 98.0 
			  All ages Male 50.6 48.5 46.1 38.8 42.4 45.1 58.2 
			   Female 19.9 19.8 21.3 19.8 20.1 19.6 22.6 
			   Total 34.9 33.9 33.5 29.1 31.2 32.2 40.1 
			           
			 Herpes (first episode) <15 Male 0.3 0.2 0.0 0.8 0.3 0.2 0.8 
			   Female 5.2 5.1 9.1 10.3 8.9 7.5 9.2 
			   Total 2.7 2.6 4.4 5.4 4.5 3.8 4.9 
			  15 to 19 Male 29.8 31.5 37.1 41.4 41.2 45.5 44.9 
			   Female 133.4 156.9 190.3 208.4 201.2 214.0 221.1 
			   Total 80.3 92.2 111.4 122.6 119.0 127.2 130.4 
			  All ages Male 27.2 29.9 36.1 39.9 42.5 45.2 46.3 
			   Female 41.4 45.7 55.6 61.2 63.4 68.5 72.6 
			   Total 34.4 37.9 46.0 50.7 53.1 57.0 59.6 
			           
		
	
	
		
			 Syphilis <15 Male 0.4 0.0 0.0 0.2 0.0 0.0 0.0 
			   Female 1.1 0.2 0.3 0.5 0.0 0.0 0.2 
			   Total 0.8 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.0 0.0 0.1 
			  15 to 19 Male 4.0 3.3 2.5 2.8 3.7 3.2 4.0 
			   Female 2.2 3.2 2.7 1.7 3.2 2.0 1.3 
			   Total 3.1 3.2 2.6 2.3 3.5 2.6 2.7 
			  All ages Male 10.8 10.8 11.1 9.9 9.8 9.1 10.2 
			   Female 2.0 1.7 1.6 1.4 1.3 1.1 1.1 
			   Total 6.3 6.1 6.3 5.6 5.5 5.1 5.6 
			           
			 Warts (first episode) <15 Male 4.1 3.9 4.0 2.2 1.0 1.8 1.4 
			   Female 17.4 17.9 20.7 22.4 22.9 16.2 14.7 
			   Total 10.6 10.7 12.2 12.0 11.6 8.8 7.9 
			  15 to 19 Male 222.3 231.1 257.2 274.3 275.4 257.3 252.4 
			   Female 605.8 634.8 689.4 720.6 700.1 639.4 619.1 
			   Total 409.1 426.6 466.7 491.2 482.3 442.8 430.2 
			  All ages Male 145.3 148.5 158.2 162.3 164.1 158.3 160.5 
			   Female 124.0 126.5 136.8 141.9 136.6 130.6 131.2 
			   Total 134.5 137.3 147.3 151.9 150.3 144.4 145.6 
			 Notes: 1. Data are sourced from genitor-urinary medicine (GUM) clinic KC60 returns (2005-08) and GUM clinic GUMCAD returns (2009-11). GUM clinic Chlamydia data are supplemented with data from the National Chlamydia Screening Programme (NCSP) and ‘Non-NCSP/Non-GUM’ services (2008-11) for those aged 15 to 24. 2. Numbers of diagnoses are estimated where GUM clinic data are unavailable. 3. Data presented follow calendar years (January to December), not financial years (April to March). 4. Data represent the number of diagnoses reported and not the number of people diagnosed. 5. Data represent STI diagnoses among people accessing services located in England, i.e. data may include people who are resident in England; Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland or abroad. 6. Rates for 2011 have been calculated using Office for National Statistics population estimates for 2010. 7. Data on diagnoses reported with an unknown gender may be included in the diagnosis total. 8. Age group ‘<15’ includes those aged 13 to 14 only.

Slaughterhouses: Horses

Mary Creagh: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether the Food Standards Agency has withdrawn a licence to slaughter horses from any UK abattoir in the last two years; and on what dates and for what reasons any such withdrawal has taken place.

Anna Soubry: In the last two years the Food Standards Agency has not withdrawn the approval of a slaughterhouse approved to slaughter horses in the United Kingdom.

Streptococcus

Naomi Long: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  with reference to the Health Protection Agency's UK Standards for Microbiology Investigations B58, processing swabs for group B streptococcal carriage, revised in August 2012, what steps his Department is taking to make gold standard testing for group B Strep is available at the request of pregnant women and their health professionals within the NHS; and what the timetable is for making such testing available;
	(2)  with reference to the Health Protection Agency's UK Standards for Microbiology Investigations B58, processing swabs for group B streptococcal carriage, revised in August 2012, what steps his Department is taking to ensure the gold standard testing for group B Strep is available from all the laboratories within the NHS; and what the timetable is for making such testing available;
	(3)  what assessment he has made of the effects of the 2012 update to the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists Prevention of early onset neonatal group B streptococcal disease guidelines on rates of group B streptococcal infections in newborn babies;
	(4)  how many NHS microbiology laboratories follow the Health Protection Agency's UK Standards Microbiology Investigations B58 processing swabs for group B streptococcal carriage, revised in August 2012 when testing for group B Strep carriage;
	(5)  what steps his Department is taking to educate relevant health professionals about the suitability of different tests for group B streptococcal carriage, including the suitability of different swab sites and culture methods.

Daniel Poulter: The UK National Screening Committee (UK NSC) advises Ministers and the national health service in all four United Kingdom countries about all aspects of screening policy, including screening policy for group B streptococcus (GBS) carriage in pregnancy. On 13 November 2012 the UK NSC recommended that a national screening programme to test for GBS carnage in pregnancy using the enriched culture medium test should not be offered. This is because there is insufficient evidence to demonstrate that the benefits to be gained from screening all pregnant women and treating those carrying the organism with intravenous antibiotics during labour would outweigh the harms.
	At the request of the chief medical officer, the Health Protection Agency (HPA) has agreed to work with the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, the Royal College of Midwives and the Royal College of Pathologists to produce a working paper by the end of March 2013. This paper will address:
	the availability and quality of GBS testing within NHS laboratories, requested by pregnant women and their healthcare professionals when there is a clinical indication to carry out such a test, including a proposed timetable for introduction; and
	production of educational materials for health professionals to include details on the suitability of testing methodology, sample site selection and culture methods.
	No assessment has been made by the Department of the effects of the 2012 update to the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists Prevention of early onset neonatal group B streptococcal disease guidelines on rates of group B streptococcal infections in newborn babies. Laboratories across England, Wales and Northern Ireland submit data to the Health Protection Agency on GBS infection. Submission of data is voluntary, therefore completeness of reporting has varied over time and across different parts of the country. Latest figures show a drop in disease rates between 2010 and 2011.
	UK Standards for Microbiology Investigations (SMIs) are freely available from the HPA website. Laboratories can download and adapt the method into a standard operating procedure based on local policies. The SMIs are not mandatory and therefore the HPA does not know how many NHS laboratories use the method.
	In using SMIs, laboratories should take account of local requirements and undertake additional investigations where appropriate. SMIs help laboratories to meet accreditation requirements by promoting high quality practices which are auditable. UK microbiology laboratories that do not use SMIs should be able to demonstrate at least equivalence in their testing methodologies to the relevant accreditation body.

Streptococcus

Nicholas Dakin: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to his answer of 14 January 2013, Official Report, column 628, on streptococcus, what the definition is of high-risk pregnant women in this context; who provided that definition; and whether a consultation has been held on that definition.

Daniel Poulter: Estimates of the early-onset neonatal group B streptococcus (GBS) disease are included in the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists revised Green-Top clinical guideline on the subject at:
	www.rcog.org.uk/files/rcog-corp/GTG36_GBS.pdf
	The guideline identifies risk factors including: fever in labour, prolonged rupture of membranes at term, preterm births, positive GBS swab in a previous pregnancy and positive GBS swab in current pregnancy.

Sunbeds: Safety

Paul Beresford: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment his Department has made of the recent study conducted by the University of Dundee on the compliance of sunbeds with British and European safety standards; and what steps he intends to take in response.

Anna Soubry: The Department is aware of the university of Dundee study on the compliance of sunbeds with British and European safety standards. Failure of products to comply with the irradiance limits specified in the appropriate standard BS EN 60335-2-27 is a matter for Trading Standards authorities. The Health Protection Agency (HPA) is undertaking a similar assessment to that carried out by the Dundee group however the HPA study includes the duration of exposure as well as irradiance measurements relating to standard BS EN 60335-2-27. This will enable an assessment of total exposure from sunbeds for comparison with solar radiation exposure in the United Kingdom and overseas. The HPA study will cover the four countries of the UK. The HPA study is expected to be completed in spring 2013.

Sunbeds: Young People

Paul Beresford: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of existing legislation preventing people under 18 years old using sunbeds.

Anna Soubry: The use of sunbeds significantly raises the risk of skin cancer, particularly in younger people. The Sunbeds (Regulation) Act 2010 for England and Wales, which came into effect on 8 April 2011, aims to prevent those under the age of 18 from being permitted to use sunbeds in commercial premises. Enforcement of the Act is the responsibility of local authorities. Businesses that break the law can be fined up to £20,000. However, the Department does not hold information on the number of sun bed businesses in England and Wales that have been prosecuted under the Act.
	The Department will continue to work with Cancer Research UK to raise awareness of the risks and long term effects of sunbeds, regardless of age, and to assess the effectiveness of existing measures to reduce these risks.

CHURCH COMMISSIONERS

Marriage

Therese Coffey: To ask the hon. Member for Banbury, representing the Church Commissioners, in which publicly accessible document the (a) powers and (b) obligations of a vicar with regard to marriage are set out; whether that document addresses the question of whether (i) the power of a vicar to marry is restricted solely to the church to which his or her benefice is tied or the church where he or she is a priest in charge and (ii) a vicar can conduct a marriage in a building other than one belonging to the Church of England; and if he will make a statement.

Tony Baldry: The law governing marriage is a complex mixture of common law, canon law and statute law. For that reason there is no single piece of legislation where the answers to my hon. Friend’s questions are to be found. I recommend my hon. Friend contacts the House of Commons Library to obtain a copy of ‘Anglican Marriage in England and Wales—A Guide to the Law for the Clergy’ or The Faculty Office of the Archbishop of Canterbury (1, The Sanctuary, SW1P 3JT) which publishes a useful booklet which will answer her questions. Information relating to intending couples—including the answers to many frequently asked questions—is available online at:
	http://www.yourchurchwedding.org/

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Africa

James Duddridge: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development 
	(1)  what recent discussions she has had with the London Stock Exchange about the development of stock exchanges in Africa;
	(2)  what assessment she has made of the importance of local and regional African stock exchanges for development in that area.

Alan Duncan: Well-regulated stock exchanges are essential to the improvement of financial markets in Africa. They are also critical to encouraging investment and sustaining economic growth. These markets would create opportunities for public and private investment in infrastructure such as schools, hospitals and roads—the key building blocks for a vibrant private sector.

Argentina

Rebecca Harris: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what her policy is on voting financial support to Argentina in (a) the Inter-American Development Bank, (b) the World Bank and (c) other multilateral development banks of which the UK is a shareholder.

Justine Greening: I have instructed the UK's representatives at the Inter-American Development Bank and World Bank to vote against all new proposals for financial support to the Government of the Republic of Argentina presented by these institutions, while reserving the right to support proposals that can demonstrate exceptional benefits to the poorest people of Argentina. These are the only Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs), in which the UK is a shareholder, from which the Government of Argentina borrows.
	The UK must ensure that the scarce resources of the MDBs are used as effectively as possible to foster development and economic growth. In light of recent actions by the Argentine Government I am no longer confident that further investments in Argentina would be consistent with these objectives. The actions include the failure to comply with the World Bank's International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes rulings; failure to agree to standard IMF Article IV surveillance since 2006; and the recent IMF censure, the first of its kind, as a result of continued failure to remedy breach of data obligations under the IMF Articles of Agreement, seriously undermining our ability to properly assess proposed future loans by the MDBs. This position will be kept under review, subject to the future actions of the Government of the Republic of Argentina and its compliance with its international obligations.

Burma

Ivan Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development whether her Department supports capacity building projects for the government of Burma.

Alan Duncan: DFID funds capacity-building support to Government and non-government institutions through trusted expert organisations to support the reforms in Burma.
	For example, through the World Bank, DFID provides capacity building support to the Government's Microfinance Supervisory Enterprise to ensure that small-scale loans are affordable and reach the poorest. DFID also supports the International Rice Research Institute to advise the Department of Agriculture on appropriate rice seeds and planting techniques which will benefit poor farmers.
	No UK aid, goes directly through central Government of Burma budgets.

Burma

Ivan Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development whether her Department's officials are able to travel freely throughout Burma.

Alan Duncan: DFID officials have good access throughout Burma. However, some areas cannot be accessed for reasons of safety and security. In those areas, UK aid is delivered by trusted partners who can report accurately on the use and impact of UK aid funds.

Burma

Ivan Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent assessment her Department has made of international humanitarian access to all internally displaced people in Kachin State, Burma.

Alan Duncan: We have closely followed the latest round of recent talks held in China about Kachin and will be following up to assess progress. The UK regularly raises the urgent need for full and unfettered humanitarian access to all displaced people in Kachin State with the Burmese authorities, representatives of non-state armed groups and the UN. I have discussed this issue with the UN's Emergency Relief Coordinator, Baroness Amos, on 25 January. I also raised the issue with the foreign Minister of Burma on 11 February.

Developing Countries: Health Services

Jeremy Lefroy: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps her Department is taking to build health care capacity and improve public health to tackle neglected tropical diseases.

Alan Duncan: The UK aims to improve the provision of basic health services for the poor in developing countries by strengthening health systems, training health workers and increasing access to essential medicines. This addresses a range of health problems including neglected tropical diseases (NTDs). In addition, UK-funded education, water, sanitation and hygiene programmes have an impact on public health and NTDs. NTDs are both a cause and consequence of poverty, affecting the hardest to reach people, and leading to impoverishment through disability, stigma and lost livelihoods.
	Since 2009, the UK has funded global NTD programmes including eradication of guinea worm, control of lymphatic filariasis, onchocerciasis and schistosomiasis, and research into NTDs. In the last 12 months, the UK has launched new programmes targeting neglected tropical diseases (NTDs). These include the global mapping of trachoma, support to strengthen WHO's NTD team and taking an integrated, health systems based approach, to tackle NTDs in both Nigeria and South Sudan.

Developing Countries: Health Services

Jeremy Lefroy: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps she is taking to ensure that strengthening of health systems will form part of the global development agenda after 2015.

Alan Duncan: DFID is fully supportive of all efforts to give prominence to strengthening health systems strengthening in any post 2015 agenda. This is a key means of obtaining and sustaining improved health outcomes, particularly for women and children.
	The Prime Minister's role as co-chair of the High Level Panel on the Post 2015 Development Agenda has enabled the UK Government to listen to a wide range of views on health and we have expressed our support for strengthening health systems in the ensuing discussions.

Developing Countries: Health Services

Jeremy Lefroy: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps her Department is taking to integrate its policy on neglected tropical diseases and its policy on water and sanitation.

Alan Duncan: The Department for International Development (DFID) recognises the central contribution that water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) can play in the prevention and control of neglected tropical diseases (NTDs). This is a reflection of DFID's increasing commitment to closer intersectoral collaboration to maximise public health benefits for high risk populations.
	To achieve this, DFID supports a number of global and country level initiatives on NTDs, including mapping trachoma prevalence against access to WASH services. Schools will also be important centres for the extension of better diagnostic, treatment and preventive services. In Nigeria and South Sudan, DFID support will target a range of NTDs, working to ensure close co-ordination across WASH and NTD programmes in these and other countries to deliver greater impact on the lives of those suffering from NTDs.

Ethiopia

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development with reference to her Department's press release of 11 January 2013 on the Ethiopia Peace and Development programme, if she will list the shortlisted bidders for the tenders relating to the Security and Justice component of this programme; whether a preferred tender has been identified; what the estimated date is for the contract to be issued; what progress she has made in discussions with UN partners on the nature of engagement with the Special Police under consideration in order to achieve a safe and secure Somali region; and if she will make a statement.

Lynne Featherstone: Due to this being an ongoing procurement process, currently at preferred bidder stage, this information is currently commercially sensitive and DFID cannot release details of bids. DFID publishes all contracts on Contracts Finder:
	https://online.contractsfinder.businesslink.gov.uk/?site=1000&lang=en
	once the procurement process is complete.
	We are considering a proposal for a multi-dimensional child justice programme that includes a component on human rights training for security and justice institutions in the Somali Region, including the Special Police force. The UK will not provide any direct financing to any of the security and justice institutions concerned.

Overseas Aid

James Duddridge: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much and what proportion of her Department's spending did not count towards Official Development Assistance measures in each of the last five years.

Alan Duncan: For the last three years, the Department for International Development (DFID) has published information on its spending that is not classified as Official Development Assistance (ODA) in the 'Statistics on International Development' publication. Prior to 2009-10 that information was not published and it would incur disproportionate cost to identify it for earlier years.
	In 2011-12 the DFID Gross Public Expenditure on Development (GPEX) was £7,682.19 million, of which £142.89 million did not count towards ODA (or 1.9 %).
	In 2010-11 the DFID GPEX was £7,689.15 million, of which £98.2 million did not count towards ODA (or 1.3%).
	In 2009-10 the DFID GPEX was £6,551.8 million, of which £77.2 million did not count towards ODA (or 1.2%).
	For the Statistics on International Development publications, please see:
	http://www.dfid.gov.uk/About-us/How-we-measure-progress/Aid-Statistics/

Staff

Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many staff were employed by her Department in each of the last five years; and at what grade or pay band such staff were appointed.

Alan Duncan: The number of DFID home civil service (HCS) staff in post by job grade, as at 31 December in each of the last five years, are shown in the following table.
	
		
			 Job grade 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 
			 SCS—Senior Civil Servant 98 97 83 78 79 
			 A1 (Grade 6) 253 268 296 321 361 
			 A2 (Grade 7) 421 443 460 511 556 
			 A2(L)—Senior Executive Officer 130 122 136 146 174 
			 B1(D)—Fast Stream 69 57 59 72 84 
			 B1—Higher Executive Officer 263 258 244 231 234 
			 B2—Executive Officer 241 207 206 186 183 
			 C1—Administrative Officer 156 140 120 99 92 
			 C2—Administrative Assistant 19 22 15 13 10 
			 Total 1,650 1,614 1,619 1,657 1,773

EDUCATION

Children: Protection

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Education whether he plans to introduce legislation to improve the responsiveness of local authorities in dealing with cases of child neglect.

Edward Timpson: holding answer 31 January 2013
	This Government does not have any plans at present to introduce new legislation to improve the responsiveness of local authorities in dealing with cases of child neglect. The Children Act 1989 introduced a duty for all local authorities to safeguard and promote the welfare of children within their area who are in need (section 17). Local authorities also have a duty to make enquiries to decide whether and what action should be taken to safeguard the child from significant harm (section 47).
	We are revising the statutory safeguarding guidance, “Working Together to Safeguard Children which will clarify the legislative requirements—so all organisations know what the law says they and others must do. The guidance will also emphasise the importance of assessing children and families in a way that is timely and proportionate to their needs and transparent for children and families. The underpinning legislative framework will remain the same.

Children: Protection

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what steps he is taking to increase the number of services available to adolescents in the child protection system.

Edward Timpson: holding answer 6 February 2013
	It is for local authorities, working closely with their Local Safeguarding Children's Boards and other local agencies, to identify and provide appropriate services in their areas for children and young people, including adolescents, who are assessed as being in need (section 17), suffering or likely to suffer significant harm (section 47), the subject of a care order (section 31A) or provided accommodation (section 20) under the Children Act 1989.
	We are currently revising the statutory safeguarding guidance, “Working Together to Safeguard Children”, which will clarify these legislative requirements so that all organisations know what the law says they and others must do. The Government are clear that it is important to assess children in a way that is timely, transparent and proportionate to the needs of the individual child and providing services which respond to identified need.

Children: Protection

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Education whether his Department plans to consult on the restructuring of the child protection system.

Edward Timpson: holding answer 7 February 2013
	Securing the safety and wellbeing of all children and protecting them from abuse and neglect remains central to this Government's policy. In his speech to the Institute of Public Policy Research last November, the Secretary of State for Education, my right hon. Friend the Member for Surrey Heath (Michael Gove), reinforced this message and spoke about the need for further improvement to the child protection system. He called for action: “for those of us entrusted with responsibility at this time—in central and local Government—in social work, schools, the police, the health service—to work together to improve our child protection system”.
	The reforms we are implementing to the child protection system, which started in June 2010 with a wide ranging consultation and review by Professor Munro, remain a high priority. We are committed to working with all interested parties including other Government Departments, local authority children's services, the social work profession, education, police, health and the voluntary and community sectors to improve the care and support of all children, and in particular the most vulnerable in our society.

CABINET OFFICE

Conditions of Employment

Julie Elliott: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what estimate he has made of the number of people employed on zero-hour contracts in (a) the UK, (b) the north east and (c) Sunderland.

Nick Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	Letter from Glen Watson, dated February 2013
	As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking for the number of people employed on zero-hour contracts in (a) the UK, (b) the North East and (c) Sunderland. (143089)
	The Labour Force Survey (LFS) provides estimates of people on zero-hour contracts; these people are not contracted to work a set number of hours, and are only paid for the number of hours that they actually work.
	For the period April-June 2012 it is estimated that 114,000 people in the UK and 3,000 people in the North East were on zero-hour contracts.
	Estimates for Sunderland are not of a sufficient quality, due to their small sample size, to be provided from the LFS.
	As with any sample survey, estimates from the LFS are subject to a margin of uncertainty. It is estimated that the true value is likely to lie between 94,000 and 134,000 for the UK and 1,000 and 6,000 for the North East.

Financial Services: Employment

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many people in (a) Barnsley Central constituency, (b) South Yorkshire and (c) England are employed in the financial services sector.

Nick Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	Letter from Glen Watson, dated February 2013
	As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question concerning how many people in (a) Barnsley Central constituency, (b) South Yorkshire and (c) England are employed in the financial services sector.
	Annual employment statistics are available from the Business Register and Employment Survey (BRES). Table 1 as follows contains the latest figures available, showing the number in employment in 2011, for the financial service activities industry for Barnsley Central constituency, the former metropolitan county of South Yorkshire and England.
	National and local area estimates for many labour market statistics, including employment, unemployment and claimant count are available on the NOMIS website at
	http://www.nomisweb.co.uk
	
		
			 Table 1—Employment in the financial services sector(1) for Barnsley Central, South Yorkshire and England: 2011 
			  Number 
			 Barnsley Central 300 
			 South Yorkshire(2) 9,400 
			 England 463,400 
			 (1) Based on the Standard Industrial Classification 2007 (SIC(2007)) division 64 (2) Former metropolitan county of South Yorkshire

Government Departments: Internet

Angus MacNeil: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office 
	(1)  what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of implementing the new www.gov.uk website;
	(2)  what estimate he has made of the cost of (a) hosting and (b) maintaining the www.gov.uk website in each of the next five years.

Nick Hurd: The estimated cost of implementing GOV.UK, to the end of the current financial year (31 March 2013) is £18.7 million saving taxpayers £36 million with the closure of Directgov and Businesslink. This includes £4.6 million on the cost of developing the Alpha and Beta versions of the website.
	The cost of hosting GOV.UK is estimated at £1.7 million per annum. The cost of hosting Directgov and Businesslink.gov.uk was reported as £8,458,328 in “Reporting on progress: Central government websites 2009/10”
	http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/sites/default/files/resources/websitemetrics2009-10.pdf
	The cost of maintaining GOV.UK, including hosting, is estimated at £9.6 million per annum. The total cost of Directgov and Businesslink including hosting was reported as £61 million in “Reporting on progress: Central government websites 2009/10”
	http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/sites/default/files/resources/websitemetrics2009-10.pdf

Richard III

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office whether he has any plans to propose that Richard III be granted a state funeral.

Hugh Robertson: I have been asked to reply 
	on behalf of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.
	We have no such plans. I understand that plans are already under way for a re-interment of the remains of what is believed to be Richard III in Leicester.

Unemployment: Ethnic Groups

Stephen Timms: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what assessment he has made of the extent of unemployment in ethnic minority communities.

Nick Hurd: holding answer 11 February 2013
	The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	Letter from Glen Watson, dated February 2013
	As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking what assessment has been made of the extent of unemployment in ethnic minority communities. 142650
	Unemployment levels and rates by ethnic group for the UK are published in Table A09 as part of the Labour Market Statistical bulletin, available here:
	http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/publications/re-reference-tables.html?edition=tcm%3A77-222531
	The latest estimates are provided in the table. Data for other ethnic minority communities are not available.
	
		
			 October 2011 to September 2012 
			  Unemployment 
			  Level (thousands) Rate (%) 
			 Asian communities 267 12.4 
			 Afro-Caribbean communities 201 13.4 
			 UK (as a whole) 2,448 7.9 
			 Source: Annual Population Survey

DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER

Political Party Funding

Priti Patel: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what plans he has to reform the funding of political parties.

Chloe Smith: Discussions between the main political parties at Westminster are ongoing—I understand they are close to a conclusion after seven meetings.

City Deals

Simon Wright: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what progress he has made on the implementation of the second wave of City Deals.

Nicholas Clegg: Building on the success of the first wave of City Deals a second wave with a further 20 cities was launched on 29 October 2012. All 20 cities have now submitted initial proposals and we expect to make announcements on progressing these deals shortly.

Overseas Electors

Iain Stewart: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what plans he has to review the rights of overseas electors to vote in general elections.

Chloe Smith: British citizens resident overseas can register to vote in UK parliamentary and European parliamentary (but not local) elections in the UK, provided that they have been registered in the UK in the past 15 years.
	The Government is considering whether the 15-year limit into voting rights for British citizens overseas remains appropriate, but has no immediate plans to alter the legislation.

Voting System

Gordon Henderson: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what recent steps he has taken to ensure that every vote cast in a general election is worth the same.

Nicholas Clegg: The Parliamentary Voting System and Constituencies (PVSC) Act 2011 provides for more equal sized constituencies and for the number of MPs to be reduced from 650 to 600. The Electoral Registration and Administration Act 2013 moves the first review of parliamentary constituency boundaries under the PVSC Act from 2013 to 2018.

Social Mobility: Merseyside

Steve Rotheram: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what progress he is making on increasing levels of social mobility on Merseyside.

Nicholas Clegg: Improving social mobility is the principal goal of this Government's social policy which is why we are introducing policies such as early education for disadvantaged two-year-olds, the Pupil Premium, and the £1 billion Youth Contract. These policies will help to improve social mobility across the country, including on Merseyside.

Succession to the Crown Bill

Andrew George: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what discussions he has had with his ministerial colleagues on the Succession to the Crown Bill.

Chloe Smith: Discussions between Ministers are ongoing. The Succession to the Crown Bill is due to have its Second Reading in the other place on 14 February 2013.

Electoral Register

Nia Griffith: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister with reference to the pilot projects in 2012 on the potential for data matching to be used to confirm existing electors, which alternative national data sets he is considering using to add to the confirmation rate.

Chloe Smith: The 2012 confirmation pilots used the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) CIS database to match the registers of 14 local authorities. The rationale for using this database was that the results of the 2011 pilots indicated that around 66% of entries on the register could be positively matched with DWP data.
	Following their evaluation of the 2012 pilots, the Electoral Commission recommended the investigation of options for increasing the proportion of electoral register entries that can be matched and the Cabinet Office are exploring this further with the next set of data matching pilots. These will examine data matching for the purposes of finding new electors and are being conducted in February and March 2013. As part of this work, we may also be able to carry out a statistical exercise to assess the potential impact on the confirmation rate of including other national data sets.
	The national datasets to be used in the 2013 pilots are:
	DWP: social security/HMRC: working tax credit, child tax credit, child benefit
	DFE: National Pupil Database
	Welsh Government: Pupil Level Annual School Census; Lifelong Learning Wales Record
	Higher Education Funding Council for England: HESA Student Record 2011/2012 (these data will be used solely for statistical analysis of its potential for adding to the confirmation rate; they will not be used to identify potential electors who may be missing from the register).
	Student Loans Co: Student finance customer account system (higher education)
	Royal Mail Group Limited; National Change of Address Update, National Change of Address Suppress and Home Mover Mailing Service.

Electoral Register

Nia Griffith: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister with reference to the pilot projects in 2012 on the potential for data matching to be used to confirm existing electors, what estimate he has made of the cost per elector of putting their details through a data matching process.

Chloe Smith: The impact assessment published alongside the Electoral Reform and Administration Act forecasts a net cost saving of around £1 per elector, £50 million nationally, from implementing confirmation while guaranteeing the completeness of the electoral register by pre-populating the 2014 electoral register with over half the eligible electorate before the canvass begin. The Government will refine the cost benefit calculations based on the 2012 pilots when the invoices from the pilots have been received.
	The impact assessment is published online at:
	http://www.parliament.uk/documents/impact-assessments/IA12-010A.pdf

Trident

Thomas Docherty: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister which permanent secretaries have been consulted by the Chief Secretary to the Treasury as part of the Trident Alternatives Review.

Danny Alexander: I have been asked to reply 
	as the Minister responsible for the Trident Alternatives Review.
	I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 6 February 2013, Official Report, column 336W.

ATTORNEY-GENERAL

Crown Prosecution Service: Complaints

Chris Evans: To ask the Attorney-General what recent discussions he has had with the Director of Public Prosecutions on introducing independent oversight of complaints made about the Crown Prosecution Service.

Dominic Grieve: The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) is currently revising its complaints handling procedure and introducing independent oversight through the appointment of an Independent Assessor for Complaints. The appointment process is already under way and should be completed by 1 April 2013.

Crown Prosecution Service: Complaints

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Attorney-General how many complaints have been made against the Crown Prosecution Service over its handling of domestic violence cases in each year since 2010.

Oliver Heald: The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) does not record any data on complaints received relating to domestic violence cases, as it only records complaints relating to specific offence categories. Domestic violence is not a specific offence category and covers a wide and varied range of offences.

Crown Prosecution Service: Complaints

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Attorney-General how many complaints made against the Crown Prosecution Service over its handling of (a) rape cases and (b) other serious sexual offences have been (i) upheld and (ii) partially upheld since 2010.

Dominic Grieve: The following tables show the number of complaints received by the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) concerning its handling of the offences outlined above, which were completed in each financial year since 1 April 2010, and the number of those complaints which have been upheld and partially upheld. The financial year 2012-13 includes those complaints finalised between 1 April 2012 and 7 February 2013.
	
		
			 (a) Number of complaints regarding rape offences 
			  2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 
			 Not upheld 21 26 18 
			 Part upheld 3 5 4 
			 Upheld 3 2 0 
			 Withdrawn 2 0 0 
			     
			 Total rape complaints 29 33 22 
			 Total upheld/partially upheld 6 7 4 
			     
			 Percentage upheld/partially upheld 20.7 21.2 18.2 
		
	
	
		
			 (b) Number of complaints regarding sexual offences excluding rape 
			  2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 
			 Not upheld 87 66 50 
			 Part upheld 18 11 2 
			 Upheld 17 7 8 
			 Withdrawn 1 1 0 
		
	
	
		
			 Number of complaints regarding total sex offence complaints 
			  2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 
			 Total sex offence complaints 123 85 60 
			 Total upheld/partially upheld 35 18 10 
			     
			 Percentage upheld/partially upheld 28.5 21.2 16.7 
		
	
	Rape offences consist of the following offences:
	Sexual Offences—Rape
	Sexual Offences—Rape—Adult (Female/male)
	Sexual Offences—Rape—Child (Female/Male)
	Sexual offences excluding rape consist of the following offences:
	Sexual Offences
	Sexual Offences—Indecent Assault
	Sexual Offences—Indecent Assault—Assault Adult (Female/Male)
	Sexual Offences—Indecent Assault—Assault Child (Female/Male)
	Sexual Offences—Other.

Serious Fraud Office: Funding

John Robertson: To ask the Attorney-General what plans he has for future funding arrangements for the Serious Fraud Office to conduct major complex investigations.

Dominic Grieve: The SFO has adequate funding from HM Treasury to deliver its regular caseload. In the event that the SFO is required to fund an exceptional large case, HM Treasury will consider funding from the Reserve on a ring-fenced basis.

Children: Abuse

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Attorney-General what budgetary provision he has made for the delivery of the recommendations made by the Director of Public Prosecutions in his responses to the Rochdale and Jimmy Savile child abuse cases.

Oliver Heald: The prosecution of child abuse cases is and will remain a key priority of the CPS and will continue to be funded accordingly.

Norman Scarth

John Hemming: To ask the Attorney-General what the total cost to the public purse was of the prosecution of Norman Scarth for contempt of court for recording a court hearing which was heard in court on 23 January 2013; and what the cost to the public purse was of (a) legal aid, (b) court time and (c) prosecution.

Dominic Grieve: The contempt proceedings against Norman Scarth were brought on behalf of the Solicitor-General by the Treasury Solicitor's Department at a cost of £15,523.99, including fees for Counsel and court fees.
	The Attorney-General's Office does not record legal aid or court costs.

Prosecutions

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Attorney-General for which offences the Crown Prosecution Service records the number of referrals it receives from the police for a charging decision.

Oliver Heald: The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) maintains no central record of the offences or category of offences on cases referred to the CPS for a charging decision. However, some limited records are held, by way of monitoring flags applied to the case record on the Case Management System (CMS), for the numbers of pre-charge decisions recorded against suspects considered for offences of rape or human trafficking. The figures reported by way of monitoring flags, are dependant upon lawyers and administrative staff identifying cases and flagging them on CMS.
	A rape or human trafficking flag is applied at the onset of a case, and remains in place even if the charges are subsequently amended or dropped. If a case commences under a different offence but at a later date charges of rape or human trafficking are preferred, the flag will be applied at that point. Such charges may be considered at the time of the pre-charge decision but, following the charging decision, a defendant may be charged with another offence. Similarly, there may be cases where a person was proceeded against for offences of rape or human trafficking but convicted of a lesser offence.

Travel

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Attorney-General how much the Law Officers' Departments spent on (a) the Government Car Service and (b) other taxi or car services for ministerial travel in each year since 2009-10; and if he will make a statement.

Oliver Heald: The information requested is as follows:
	(a) Departmental spend on the Government Car Service is published in an annual written ministerial statement given by the Secretary of State for Transport, details of which can be found within the Libraries of both Houses.
	A summary of the information for the Attorney-General's Office is as follows:
	
		
			  Spend (£) 
			 2009-10 188,131 
			 2010-11 127,072 
			 2011-12 92,140 
		
	
	Details of the costs for 2012-13 will be published in the normal way later this year.
	(b) The total spent on other car services by the Attorney-General's Office is:
	
		
			  Spend (£) 
			 2009-10 0 
			 2010-11 0 
			 2011-12 322 
			 2012-13 to date 19